New Mexico Art Tells its History

Viva La Fiesta (Zozobra) - Tapia

Viva La Fiesta (Zozobra), 1996
Luis Tapia (American, born 1950)
carved and painted wood, 36 x 39 x 39 in. (91.4 x 99.1 x 99.1 cm)
Museum purchase with funds from the Elizabeth and Duncan Boeckman Acquisition Endowment, 1997
1997.8.1 

Luis Tapia was raised in Santa Fe, where during the sixties and seventies, he began to rediscover his heritage and Latin roots through his work as a santero. Carving bultos of Catholic saints, he attained success with his traditional subject matter and materials. However, Tapia’s research into Spanish Colonial art inspired a shift in his work, as he experimented with commercial paints and vivid colors to create carved tableaux of contemporary Hispanic life in northern New Mexico.

 

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