I am in the process of rebuilding my blog in a new format that will give me more flexibility. You can get to it with my main URL, www.DelgadoArts.com. But, I thought I should put a note here in case people stumble across the old site here. THanks for visiting! Lots of great info on the Spanish Colonial Arts here in Albuquerque.
Archive for the ‘My Adventure’ Category
New Tinwork & Retablo Classes Now!
August 17, 2011Jason is finally ready to start teaching classes at Tintero Workshop & Gallery. We have started adding classes and free lectures to the calendar. We’re creating several avenues to allow you to register and to help us get the word out. We’re going to try to offer one free lecture each weekend and at least two classes! We also have Laguna Pueblo potter in the queue for classes and lectures!
- You can call Jason 505-385-3525
- You can reply to the event on the Tintero Gallery Facebook page.
- You can prepay on the MeetUp.com site for “Albuquerque Artisan’s Workshop” It’s free to join MeetUp.com.
- Pay cash, check or charge at the time of the class.
- Seniors = 55 years +
Scheduled:
- Aug 20 9AM-12PM TINWORK Workshop by Jason $75/$55 Seniors.
- Aug 20 1:30PM-2PM LECTURE Our Lady of Guadalupe Free to public.
- Aug 20 2PM-4PM RETABLO Painting Introduction by Sean $55/$45 Seniors
- Aug 24 6PM-9PM TINWORK Workshop by Jason $75/$55 Seniors.
Planned:
- TBD Making Traditional Gesso
- Oct 29 Doña Sebastiana vs Dia De Los Muertos
- TBD Holiday Ornaments
Doña Sebastiana | Lady Sebastian
August 15, 2011She is an unusual figure in the Spanish Colonial realm. She is not prayed to or revered. She is more a symbol of mortality and penance, a bleak reminder of our fragile and sinful state. She is the only “Muerto” image allowed in traditional Spanish Market. The colorful and playful muerto images of Mexico are actually a completely different family of imagery. They derive from the celebration of All Saints Day (or All Souls Day), a celebration created to help the Catholic Church assimilate existing Aztec celebrations of the dead. Much like The Death Card of the Tarot, the gleeful images of the Mexican culture actually symbolize life, change and spirit. Originally, the morbid mesoamerican native celebrations, dating back thousands of years, would revolve around the skull of the deceased, often inserting flowers (especially Marigolds) into the eye sockets to reflect the life that once was and the hope that they might visit again to give guidance from beyond. The Aztec figure known as the “Lady of the Dead,” presided over such celebrations. The modern celebration is known as “Dia de los Muertos” or “Day of the Dead.”
Then, in the turn of the century, the artist José Guadalupe Posada, created an image of a skeleton wearing the garments and hat of a sophisticated lady. The skeleton lady, known as “Catrina,” became the inspiration for the irreverent images you see today riding motorcycles, drinking tequila or dressed like Elvis, celebrating the life essence of the person that once owned that body. The body of animated skeleton figures are often referred to as “calavera” (spanish for “skull”) or “muerto” (spanish for “death”) imagery.
Death Cart bulto by Rubel Jaramillo
In sharp contrast, Doña Sebastiana is a dark reminder of our humanity. Originally, the Penitente brothers, a group of monks that were known for public acts of penance, would create a wooden cart, ridden by a skeleton woman also made of wood with jointed limbs. The cart and woman could be nearly life sized. The woman would often have human hair adorning her head. She might also be seen holding a bow and arrow. The Brothers would fill the cart with rocks and pull it on the makeshift roads about town as a demonstration of penance.
San Sebastian retablo by Vicente Telles
There is only speculation as to the source of her name, but one generally accepted theory is that the bow, a common instrument of death at that time, was simply a reminder of our mortal state, as the Grimm Reaper carries and sickle. Perhaps, when onlookers observed the death figure, they made an association with Saint Sebastian (San Sebastian) who is shown impaled by multiple arrows, hence the name, “Lady Sebastian.”
She has become a figure of superstition. Although explicitly not prayed to or revered, folk remedy might include calling upon her for healing and even in help finding lost items or protection from kidnapping.
Mostly shown in bulto form and referred to as the Death Cart, I think she is a fascinating part of the unique local history and through painting her image, I have the opportunity to educate people on yet another important difference between New Mexican art imagery and Mexican art imagery.
Spanish Market 2011 is the fist time I have painted her image. It was the last image I decided to paint just before our Preview items had to be submitted. I was very much enjoying getting into the anatomy of the skeleton. And, since she was such a simple image in terms of iconography and color, I focused on detailing her with fine brush work and sgraffito. I had painted her on a large board and the possibility of translating all of that detail onto a small retablo piqued my interest.
Doña Sebastiana copyright ©2011 Sean Wells
The large ones, I had painted on a plain board with an arched top. I thought this recalled the simple headstones of local cemeteries. When I was done, I found the image somewhat static. My Dad happened to be staying with me, so I asked him if he had any suggestions of items I could add. He said he liked when I would incorporate architectural elements (he ought to since he’s the one who covered the bill for my BSArch). I thought that was a great suggestion so I created an arched opening around the figure to recall a mausoleum. I also thought it was important to include a hint of the actual Death Cart in the background to help me tell the complete story (it appears in the small board). There are lots of wonderful details that I like in that image including the obsidian tip on the arrow in her hand, the brass buckle holding the quiver to her chest and the accuracy of the anatomy. But, my favorite element was the wispy sheer tattered gown I donned on her. I have one clay that has a wonderful translucent quality when it dries and I had the thought that I could paint it right over my detailed skeletal painting to create a gown. It was a scary moment, but it worked perfectly. The colors ran a tiny bit, but just added to her ethereal and eerie mystique. I talked with a couple of the artists about how I’m too chicken to use the traditional piñon varnish sealer for fear that I will smear my painting. But, they had recommended that I use gum arabic as a binder with my pigments. It gives just enough adhesion to allow you to topcoat items without smearing. But, I’m still not sure if I will use it. I really like the purity of simply using clay and water.
It is a fun and challenging image to create.
Reflecting on Spanish Market 2011
August 11, 2011
Well, Jason and I just experienced our first Spanish Market as a collaborative team and it was a ride! I actually got to speak on the Spanish Colonial Arts Society promotional video and one of the questions was “what makes this year’s Market special to you?” I said that although it was my first Market, I was most excited to be publicly showing the works that my brother and I have created together. On Friday night, each artist has the opportunity to show three favorite items for award consideration. For our collaborative piece, we showed our Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe piece. At first, it was a bit of an empty feeling to not receive any recognition for our work. It’s not like we were expecting to win an award, but it was strange to put your best work out there and not get any commentary back. But, the magic of Preview night is that you get to display your best work, stand with it, answer questions and hear from the public. We had the opportunity to hear directly from patrons, fellow artists and admirers. They loved hearing our stories on the collaborative process and artistic vision. They were genuinely impressed by our first major work together and encouraged us to continue on. It was a perfect culmination to a year of hard work. Of course, being able to peruse the amazing works of the other Market artists was very exciting as well.
But, my favorite Preview moment had to be when senior retablo artist Alcario Otero recognized me from my show, New Mexican Santera! He shook my hand and complimented me on the show. I was just so flattered that he watched and really excited that he was supportive of the message of the show. He commended me on creating the show. We talked about show ideas. And, he even asked me tips to minimize bubbles in the gesso.
I also got a chance to share some Preview night jitters with some of my other first year artists, who I now count among my friends. I was especially proud of my freshmen classmates, Byron Martinez (bulto carver) and Gene Gurule (tinsmith) who both took awards for their work. Byron created a beautiful unpainted bulto of La Conquistadora. He really captured her hands.
Jason and I spent some time with Gene, who explained to us that the reason he was there that night was because he was inspired after having my Grandmother, Angeline Delgado Martinez demonstrate in his classroom more than 30 years ago. He was moved by her work and recalls many details of the encounter. He continued to practice tin after the demonstration, but it took him nearly three decades to feel his work was worthy of Spanish Market.
I was also inspired by the strength of returning bulto artist Eric Gonzales who had just lost his mother the Monday before Market. He dedicated this Market to her. He was very grateful to be at Market after a long stint away and reminds us all of the deeper meaning behind all of our work.
Then, during Market, the following Saturday and Sunday, we had dozens of people who recognized the Guadalupana from preview night. It was nice that she was memorable among so many fine works.
But, I was pleasantly surprised to get a lot of positive feedback on a piece that I had done at the 11th hour. I decided I wanted to submit one more piece to Preview for consideration in the small retablo category. I had a small board on hand and had been working on an image of Doña Sebastiana.
(She is a fascinating figure—I will do a separate write up on her. You can read more about my execution of her image in that article). It was that image that garnered the most interest in my work at our booth over market weekend. I would never have imagined that we would have collectors lining up at 7:30AM (you cannot start officially selling at Market until 8AM). But, we did! We made a quick hand-scribbled sign-up sheet and soon had several names. The first couple had admired my Doña Sebastiana and La Conquistadora (the one I use for all of my marketing) and bought both! It was wonderful way to start Market. Better yet, they allowed me to display the purchased items throughout the day while they enjoyed Market. I was able to take several custom orders off the small retablo. That little image ended up making a good Market into a great Market! Jason just laughed—“Didn’t you just whip that up on Tuesday?”
Jason and I were so swamped the first day just talking with people about our work that we rarely got a chance to demonstrate. On the second day, we did get to do a bit of demonstration and we really didn’t get a chance to do any visiting with fellow artist as we normally would. But, that was certainly a good problem. We saw many distant relatives, old school chums , family and friends. We made some new friends of patrons and admirers. You can view our gallery on our Facebook page, “Dos Artisanos.” People were very excited to see a brother-sister doing collaborative work together and many actually said it was imperative that we continue our work. They were also verbally thankful that we made such an effort to demonstrate the techniques, share history and invite questions.
I’ve helped Jason in the demonstration booth for many years. In doing so, I have always tried to incorporate some graphics that tell some of our family history in tin.
This year, since our grandmother, Angelina wasn’t up to attending Market with us (she’s 91), I told her I would bring her in spirit and made a giant banner of a photo I found of her posing with the 1944 Fiesta Court. She was one of the princesses that year along with Peaches (the queen, we believe) and Viola. But, the best part about the presentation was that when she found out about the banner, she allowed me to display the original crown she wore that she had designed and constructed from tin and accented with rhinestones. People loved the banner, but nearly applauded when I would show the crown, often donning it or allowing people I thought might truly appreciate the experience to wear it themselves. It was funny how many times I had to remind the husband or Dad that this was a real photo op! I think every girl wants to wear a crown, especially a real one worn by a real princess! Some shy visitors would turn me down, but most were tickled. Several women said they had never worn a crown before. Most broke into an impromptu regal wave. Anyway, I love giving people ways to connect to the history, so it was a great vehicle to bring them into the story.
Martha Varoz Ewing implored me to attend the Sunday Morning Market Mass at the Saint Francis Basilica. I dragged my feet thinking logistically, we would not have anyone to watch the booth. Jas and I decided to go with it and left the booth unattended and went to Mass. I’m so glad we did–It was the highlight of Market! The artists are invited to bring a piece in to have it blessed. Jason insisted I bring our giant Our Lady of Guadalupe collaborative. He said it looked like Our Lady was walking around with legs because it was so big, no one could see me! And, there was Jason with his delicate hollow tin cross which weighed about 2 ounces. I teared up as we entered the Church in procession with the other artists and artworks. We placed the art at the front altar. I managed to sneak in my Grandmother’s crown to be blessed as well. I thought she would appreciate that (and she was). We listened to the bilingual mass. It was just so moving. The priest talked about how we were using our gifts to honor the Lord. Then, after the blessings, we gathered our pieces and processed out of the church and around the plaza. I saw Martha and thanked her for encouraging me to attend. She confessed to tearing up every time she attends. Our Dad was filming for the Spanish Colonial Arts Society, so we made it a point to turn our artworks and walk slowly whenever we saw his camera!
Jason and I had an excellent Market. Although it would have been icing on the cake to have sold our two large pieces (currently available at Tintero Workshop & Gallery), we had a great showing. We are feeding on the energy you all gave us and are fired up to get started for next year. We will be working on ways to find other avenues and outlets for our work in the meantime.
Thank you to all the patrons, friends and family that came to show your support! It is somewhat a labor of love, so to get encouragement for us to continue this work means a lot to both of us. We will look forward to Spanish Market 2012 and may even try entering some new categories this year!
60th Annual Spanish Market July 30-31
July 27, 2011Come join nearly 200 Spanish Colonial artisans on the historic Santa Fe Plaza July 30-31 for Spanish Market! Jason and I will be in booth 164 near the southwest corner of the Plaza, across from the 5 & Dime. To get the word out, we have created a somewhat elaborate mini-marketing campaign.
We will have an ad in the Santa Fe New Mexican official Market newspaper insert. I designed the ad myself. It’s kind of wacky, but I really wanted to do something fun and festive and get away from the gallery feel. The design is inspired by the old Sideshow posters. The ad in the paper is black and white due to budget restrictions.
We’ve also created a video invitation that will serve as a landing page for anyone who visits our new website, www.DosArtisanos.com. Technically, “artisanos” should read “artesanos.” But, the ‘artesanos’ URL was not available and the misspelled ‘artisano’ is widely accepted around here and we really liked the wunderkin siblings idea–it suits our “let’s have some fun” attitude.
The promotional video was shot by our Dad and the landing page includes a link to the outtakes which is highly entertaining.
click on image above to view our video invitation or see outtake reel.
click on image above to visit our new website.
The new website is just really a front door to our individual sites that promotes us as siblings and 5th generation artisans. The left column is all Sean links and the right is Jason links. You will find links to our online storefronts, a page on our videos and DVDs and links to our personal art blogs. If you click on the stamp, you can send us an email Or click on the Tintero images to get more information on Jason’s workshop and gallery. I’ve also just added links to our professional Facebook pages where you can get snapshots of works in progress and event reminders. Enjoy poking around!
click on image above to download the official Spanish Market brochure
The brochure includes artist name sand booth numbers along with some other goodies. I hesitate to say “I designed it” since I completed it so quickly. But, I’m proud to say I conceptualized and assembled it.
One of our family members, the talented oil painter Damian Gonzales will be showing at the Contemporary Market which happens simultaneously with Traditional Market and runs up Lincoln Street.
Click here for more logistical information on Spanish Market from the new Spanish Colonial Arts Society website (which I also designed).
Well, we hope to see you there! And, remember to support your local artisans!
FREE Workshops and Events
May 11, 2011UPCOMING WEEKEND SHOWS FOR SEAN & JASON
2011 MAY 14-15 | 10AM-4PM
Jason will be demonstrating and selling work. There is no admission fee that I can remember. Beautiful park with an interesting history and perfect small “hike” (really, a leisurely stroll).
Petroglyph National Monument
2011 MAY 14 | 10PM-4PM
Sean will be demonstrating and selling work. This will be MY FIRST demonstration all by my lonesome, so come by and say hi! The historic Casa San Ysidro will celebrate Heritage Day with music, performances and artist demonstrations. Admission is free.
Heritage Day | Casa San Ysidro
973 Old Church Road Corrales, NM 87048
2011 MAY 28 | 10AM-2PM (unconfirmed)
Jason will be conducting a workshop.
Petroglyph National Monument
FREE WORKSHOPS FROM THE SPANISH COLONIAL ARTS SOCIETY:
I’ve had several inquiries about workshops so I thought I would post these fantastic set of workshops held by the Spanish Colonial Arts Society “Arts Alive!” education program. It is an unbelievable opportunity to learn traditional Spanish Colonial Arts techniques from a Market Artist. And, the best part, it’s completely FREE to members of the Spanish Colonial Arts Society and a mere Museum Admission charge to non-members! If you’re interested, I suggest you call or email your reservation in right away. You could try sending the reservation request by email to info@SpanishColonial.org. Please let them know DelgadoArts.com sent you!
Arts Alive! free education program
Museum of Spanish Colonial Art
750 Camino Lejo on Museum Hill in Santa Fe
For more information or to reserve your spot: 505-982-2226
“Retablo” with John Jimenez
Wednesday | June 15th, 2011 | 10:00am-2:00pm
I actually took his workshop and he is just wonderful. Mr. Jimenez has a wonderful flowing style and recently received the Lifetime Achievement Award I believe, for his retablo work. He is the one who encouraged me to work with natural clays. It was a whole new world for me. You can read my blog post on my workshop experience with Mr. Jimenez HERE.
“Straw Appliqué” with Martha Varoz Ewing
Wednesday | June 22nd, 2011 | 10:00am-2:00pm
Jason and I will be taking this class! We are both looking forward to learning a new craft!
“Ramilletes (Paper Garlands)” with Museum Docents
Wednesday | June 29th, 2011 | 10:00am-2:00pm
Art Workshop making Ramilletes (Paper Garlands) with Museum Docents in Arts Alive, a free hands-on workshop for all ages. I will try to make time to take this workshop as well. I am very curious about this unusual and fleeting revival art.
“Tinwork” with Cleo Romero
Wednesday | July 6th, 2011 | 10:00am-2:00pm
Art Workshop with Tinwork Spanish Market Artist Cleo Romero in Arts Alive, a free hands-on workshop for all ages. I met Cleo at the artist’s retreat. She seems very sweet. That day, she won 3 of the door prizes, so I think of her as “Lucky Cleo.” Her work is stunning and is very different from the work of the Delgado family.
DelgadoArts.com and Sean Wells y Delgado are not official representatives of the Spanish Colonial Arts Society or the Museum of Spanish Colonial Art. However, I do contract with them on various projects. Mainly, I just feel that we have an overlapping mission to promote the Spanish Colonial Arts, so I will be sharing relevant information here.
Silent Auction Tonight 6PM NHCC
May 6, 2011Tonight is the ABQ Nouveau Retablo silent auction:
Friday | May 06 | 6:00 PM
Domenici Education Center Bld
National Hispanic Cultural Center
1701 4th St SW Albuquerque NM 87102
The auction will feature the Guadalupe retablo in tin that Jason and I collaborated on in episode 13 as well as the work of 90 other artists! I’ll be there! Auctions are great places to find some real bargains on unique are created by respected professional artists. And, of course the funds raised will go to a good cause. These proceeds will be divided between a scholarship fund under the Hispanic Women’s Council and education programs for the National Hispanic Cultural Center.
We just had some artists come by Tintero and the auction came up. It turned out the woman had entered a piece as well! She is a contemporary artist who shows at a gallery just down the street and had painted a Saint Anthony. She uses house paints and talked about how she is used to working in a very large scale. It was inspiring to see how the auction had brought many types of people together to respect the traditional form of retablo painting as an art form.
I’m burning a copy of the episode 13 now and will include a nicely packaged copy with the winning bid so the new owner of “Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe in Tin” will be able to watch us make the piece!
Ornament Workshop & Event Reminders
May 4, 2011
Well, Jason and I successfully taught our first workshop together last week! Jason’s an old pro having taught countless workshops to a range of students. But, he invited me to tag along to one opportunity to work with special needs teens at West Mesa Community Center. The teachers visited with Jason at Tintero Workshop & Gallery and knew their kids would enjoy experiencing the making of Spanish Colonial crafts themselves. We put together several dozen ornament kits and gave a choice of tin or retablos. I created a custom dove stamp for the occasion and let the students stamp their own ornament and then paint them using my natural pigment kit. We divided the groups up, introduced ourselves and our respective crafts and then worked a bit with the students to get them going. It was really a thrill to watch a whole group create from my preassembled kits. They were so creative, open-minded and positive, it was a real pleasure.
I forgot to ask permission to post face pics of students here, but I wanted to share this one piece with you (left). This girl did a wonderful job painting her ornament, but then she took the raffia I had included with the kit to string the ornaments and she told me she made a cross. I thought that was so clever. We talked a bit about the symbolism of retablos and I was moved by her depth of understanding at the concept and her original translation.
We had a wonderful afternoon and would love to teach more classes together. If you would like to discuss a similar group workshop, just drop me a line (505-500-4419)!
EPISODES TO AIR 5/4/2011 WEDNESDAY NIGHT 9PM: Conveniently, the special collaborative episode showing Jason and I working together to finish the auction piece for the National Hispanic Cultural Center retablo auction will air tonight in Santa Fe Ch16 9PM. Albuquerque Ch26 9PM will be showing Episode 03 Introduction to pigments and brushes and SAINT RITA.
AUCTION THIS FRIDAY May 6, 2011 6:00 to 8:30pm. National Hispanic Cultural Center – Pete V. Domenici Education Building. The NHCC in cooperation with the Hispanic Women’s Council will be holding their annual auction this Friday and will feature the collaborative Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe image in tin that Jason and I created in episode 13. We will include a copy of the DVD of this episode with the winning auction bid for this piece. I plan to go early to see the works by other artists. There are several notable Santeros participating including Charlie Carillo and Arturo Olivas. I’m looking forward to seeing their pieces.
copyright ©2011 SWyD
Here’s a shot of the finished piece that Jas and I did. He added the leaves at the corners. I enjoyed working on this image with him so much that we may do a larger collaboration of it for market.
Here is the link to the official website for more information on the auction: www.ABQretablo.com
Jason and I are available for demonstrations and workshops in tandem or individually.
Coat of Arms: Delgado Family Crest
April 30, 2011
copyright ©2011 Sean Wells y Delgado
[Read more about the Delgado Family Crest origin and symbolism below.]
It was so timely that I viewed parts of the inspiring Royal Wedding on the same day that I intended to write the post for my recently completed Delgado Family Coat of Arms. In the highlights of the wedding, the various media showed glimpses of the handsome program given out to guests. As a graphic artist, I was very curious to view the layout and design of such a prominent visual article. I checked online to see if there were any opportunities to view the program and was so pleased to find our most generous new royal couple had the forethought to share the program free online for all to see!
Well, there were some very beautiful layouts. I love the black and white photo of them. I love the charming watercolor map of the parade route. Although, I found the font layouts on most of the rest of the pages quite boring. But, that’s not really what I wanted to mention here on this blog. What really moved me to get on my article was the beautiful Coat of Arms layout (pg 25 of the program) that shows the crests of both families with text describing the symbolism. It’s just wonderful.
The program goes into the clever symbolism shown in both William’s Royal crest and Catherine’s family crest. I especially loved the playful visual split down the middle of Catherine’s family coat of arms as a pun reference to the name “Middleton.”
After completing the Delgado Family Crest using traditional retablo techniques, I had talked to my husband about the meaning and significance of the imagery to our kids. I am not a Delgado by name. My children are not Delgados. My married name is Wells. I am a descendant of one of the original Conquistadors, Manuel Delgado, that settled here in New Mexico more than 400 years ago. But that is not why I honor the name in my retablo work. I have incorporate the name in my artwork because it was my great-great grandfather Francisco Delgado who defined himself as a traditional Spanish Colonial Artisan tinsmith and who made the great effort to give that legacy to his children and grandchildren. Without him and his perseverance, I would not have found this important element of myself.
So, I thought if I am to use this name, I should understand it more fully. I have been using a generic Delgado crest here and there, but I thought it would really become a part of me if I painted it using my traditional retablo style and techniques. I researched the name and crest symbolism. I took my time with the piece and I reworked many areas, especially the text, to get it just right.
It was a wonderful exercise for me to recreate with my own hands
this symbol that I had used so liberally to date. It is a part of me now and I am a part of it. With each step I take to slow down and kneel to the story of that which came before me, I feel enriched, blessed, honored and humbled to be a part of this flow.
And, now I look at this magnificent fairytale couple, beginning their journey into a life people think they would want, (but would probably hate) and I wish them good will in marrying their two disjointed symbols of family together. And, they can now add their own symbols to a new crest that both honors the past and gives hope to a better future. And, I will look forward to painting a Wells crest for my family and my children that will merge the traditional Wells crest (which I have yet to research) and perhaps elements of the Delgado crest into a unique and original crest for this generation.
DELGADO FAMILY CREST ORIGINS
The family name Delgado originates from the Latin word, “delicatus” (the root of the word “delicate”), and refers to the word “thin” or “fine.”
It is so hard for me to associate these meanings with any Delgado I can remember. For me, “Delgado” conjures up images of war horses and canons, symbols of strength, power, confidence and leadership. I am coining the word “aggressive creativity” as part of my description of the modus operandi of a Delgado. The only association I can remotely connect with thoughts of filiment-like structure in the world of Delgado, is their very presence. There is something about Delgados that is so fleeting and ethereal. You cannot hold a Delgado in your hand, in your grip. So slippery and mobile, Delgados are like the valence cloud around the nucleus of an atom–you may only roughly predict where they might go next.
DELGADO FAMILY CREST SYMBOLISM
The center shield in blue represents the quality of loyalty in both a personal sense and towards the Royal obligations owed to Spain. The 7 eight-pointed stars represent the enlightenment of God. I loved painting these elements and spent a great deal of time shading and shaping them. I used to draw this exact eight-pointed dimensional star over and over as a child. maybe this was why–some genetic memory of my family’s connection. The blood red second shield represents the quality of honor and forthrightness. The eight cauldrons represent the wealth of the (presumable) lord and perhaps specific number of estates held at the time. I only own one at the moment, so maybe I should eliminate 7 cauldrons. Although, technically, our lot is a compilation of two lots, so maybe I could keep two cauldrons.
The outer shield (described as “silver”) is suspected to have been added later and may have been bestowed on the family by the King of Spain for acts of service for country or it may be some element added as part of a nuptial bond. The Spanish phrase on the outer ring reads “Ave Maria Gratia Plena,” or “Hail Mary Full of Grace.” Although I’m not sure if it was intentional, I love the balance of the symbolism of the light of God in the center and the love of Mary on the bounding ring. This “silver” ring is an especially interesting addition to the crest since the tinsmiths were derived from the silversmiths of Spain. I would have liked to somehow incorporated a hint of our family tin style, but I asked Jason to add a tin frame around the finished board. I will post a picture of the finished piece after he tins it up!
I did not leave enough room to put the text in the way I had envisioned so I decided to ghost in the covered letters so that the full words could be read. Although it was a correction, I ended up liking the effect. I used a font with the thought that the letters should look carved from the material and added highlights using color lifting and shading as needed. I used a more traditional calligraphic font for the “Delgado” banner.
This piece will be available in the Tintero Gallery in Old Town (as soon as Jason finishes the tin frame) and will soon be available online. It measures 7″ x 12″ before the tin. I’ll be offering framed and unframed prints soon as well!
Our Lady of Guadalupe Collaboration
April 13, 2011
Click on image to watch this episode online!
We just completed shooting the final episode of our premiere Season of our respective shows, New Mexican Santera and New Mexican Tinsmith. Dad had the excellent idea to do a collaborative piece for the final episode. I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to share with viewers the dynamic of two artists collaborating. It was very spontaneous since Jason didn’t even know the size of my board before showing up to shoot the show. He did a fantastic job quickly responding with a design concept and improvising some design ideas.
copyright ©2011 Sean Wells y Delgado & Jason Younis y Delgado
We both have a few finishing touches to add, but you can get a sense of the direction of the finished piece. Jason came up with a Corona gesture for the top piece that poetically reflects the crown of Mary. He also added delicate stars around the frame and roses to recall the story of Juan Diego. I asked him to include thorns on his vine to hint at the crown of thorns that Jesus wore.
We decided to take advantage of the project to use it as our submission for the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s annual Art Auction ABQ Nouveau Retablo 2011. You can view and bid on this piece and many other traditional and contemporary retablo creations Friday May 6 from 6PM-8:30PM at the National Hispanic Cultural Center Pete V. Domenici Education Building. Check out www.ABQretablos.com for more information and to view this piece online next week.
What a fun project! We hope to do more on-air collaborations next season. But, until then, the local stations will be rerunning our first season Wednesday nights at 9PM Comcast Encantada | Ch26 Albuquerque | Ch16 Santa Fe.
Now that we have our first season complete, we plan to offer our shows to the other public access channels of the Southwest. We will update our list when we get some confirmations!
OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE
[Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe]
1531 A.D. | Feast Day Dec 12 | Marian Image
A humble local named Juan Diego claimed to have been visited by the Virgin Mary. The local Bishop requested a sign. Juan Diego returned (on what is now her Feast Day) with a gift of blooming roses that had appeared in mid winter on the hill where the apparition spoke to him. He carried the flowers in his cloak and as he spilled them out for the Bishop, the image of the Virgin appeared on his cloak just as Juan Diego had described her. The Bishop fell to his knees and built a chapel on the hill. The cloak still hangs today in a shrine on the original hill. The image has come to represent the worldly love and peace that Mary has to offer, crossing ethnic boundaries.
NOTE: Videotero, LLC, Delgado Arts, New Mexican Santera and New Mexican Tinsmith have no affiliation with The National Hispanic Cultural Center or ABQ Nouveau Retablo. We are simply using this opportunity to promote an organization that shares the similar goal of preserving the Spanish Colonial Arts.
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