Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art
University of Florida Cultural Plaza
October 28, 2003 – February 22, 2004

Santos: Contemporary Devotional Folk Art in Puerto Rico explores the folk art tradition of carving santos (wooden saints used for household devotion). The carving of santos has a long tradition in Puerto Rico where santeros, or saint-makers, trace their craft to the sixteenth century. Traditionally, these small portable figures were created by self-taught rural carvers whose figures were revered as manifestations of the saints’ spirit and as objects of devotion. Today’s carvers represent a link to Puerto Rico's past and are appreciated as living symbols of the island’s cultural heritage. The Sixty santos in the exhibition are drawn from the collections of Héctor Puig and Tricia Sample and illustrate the continuation, transformation, and adaptation of this tradition by thirty-three contemporary Puerto Rican artists.

>> Introduction

Luis González
Puerto Rican, born 1938
Saint Raphael Archangel / San Rafael Arcángel, 2001
Polychromed wood
11 7/8 x 8 5/8 x 5 1/4 inches
Lent from a private Florida collection

All photos by Héctor Puig (Gainesville Sun).

The Santos website is made possible by the UF Center for Latin American Studies.