Entre lo divino y lo diario: Reinterpreting the Sacred in Santero Art

Curated by Magdalena Sterling (MA ’26)

On view in the Davis Gallery June 18 through July 24, 2026

Entre lo divino y lo diario: Reinterpreting the Sacred in Santero Art pairs the work of contemporary artist Jacob Gutierrez with traditional santos, bultos, and retablos from the University of Denver Art Collection to examine evolving ideas of sacrality in New Mexico. Gutierrez combines santero traditions such as wood carving and tinwork with airbrush painting and woodcut printmaking, mediums associated with Chicanx cultural practices ranging from lowrider car art to the political prints of El Movimiento, the Chicanx civil rights movement. His works often foreground the holiness of everyday life, depicting family members or herd animals as sacred figures, elevating the intimate and familiar into the realm of the divine. 

Objects from the collection— including retablos by Charles M. Carrillo and bultos by Gloria Lopez Cordova— exemplify traditional santero practices through their devotional subject matter, formal qualities like flattened compositions, and their role in bridging the layperson and the divine. These works function to support prayer, reinforce faith, and make sacred presence accessible within daily life. 

At its core, the exhibition asks: what is sacred and to whom? Through the shared visual language of santero art which is rooted in spiritual practice, these questions unfold across time and perspective. While Carrillo and Lopez Cordova present forms grounded in Catholic devotional traditions, Gutierrez reinterprets this language to reflect broader, more inclusive understandings of sacrality across the diverse cultural identities of New Mexico. 

Drawing from Spanish Mission aesthetics and Chicanx cultural traditions, Gutierrez echoes colonial New Mexican craftsmanship while situating his narratives firmly in the present. Across the exhibition, motifs including saints, animals, family portraits, and devotional forms underscore a living tradition, one in which the sacred and the everyday remain deeply intertwined and are continually reimagined through cultural continuity and artistic expression. 

Join us for the opening reception on Thursday, June 18 from 5-7 PM.