Santos: Contemporary Devotional Folk Art in Puerto Rico

Santos explores the Puerto Rican folk art tradition of carving santos, devotional wood sculptures of saints and holy figures. Featuring images of works by 33 contemporary artists, the catalogue describes the historical and cultural roots of carving santos, and the continuation, transformation and adaptation of the tradition. Santeros, or saint-makers, trace their craft to the 16th century. Today, santos are valued as important embodiments of Puerto Rico s artistic and cultural past. The catalogue was published to accompany Santos: Contemporary Devotional Folk Art in Puerto Rico, which was on display at the Harn Museum of Art from October 28, 2003 to February 22, 2004. The exhibition featured 60 Puerto Rican santos drawn from the collections of Héctor Puig and Tricia Sample, two local collectors. Santos features a forward by Rebecca Nagy and contributions by Manuel A. Vásquez and Teodoro Vidal.