Santo Trujillo is Dead, from the series Island of Many Gods

Scherezade García, Santo Trujillo is Dead, from the series Island of Many Gods, 2006, acrylic, charcoal, ink, and sequins on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase made possible by the R.P. Whitty Company and the Cooperating Committee on Architecture, 2013.28.2, © 2006, Scherezade García
Copied Scherezade García, Santo Trujillo is Dead, from the series Island of Many Gods, 2006, acrylic, charcoal, ink, and sequins on paper, sheet and image: 30 x 22 1⁄4 in. (76.2 x 56.5 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase made possible by the R.P. Whitty Company and the Cooperating Committee on Architecture, 2013.28.2, © 2006, Scherezade García

Artwork Details

Title
Santo Trujillo is Dead, from the series Island of Many Gods
Artist
Date
2006
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
sheet and image: 30 x 22 1⁄4 in. (76.2 x 56.5 cm)
Copyright
© 2006, Scherezade García
Credit Line
Museum purchase made possible by the R.P. Whitty Company and the Cooperating Committee on Architecture
Mediums
Mediums Description
acrylic, charcoal, ink, and sequins on paper
Classifications
Subjects
  • Figure
  • Religion — saint
Object Number
2013.28.2
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/2013.28.2

Artwork Description

García’s lushly painted and drawn works evoke the tragic yet hopeful stories that spur migration. Her angelic mestizo (racially mixed) figures are archetypes of the people of the Americas. In Santo Trujillo is Dead, García refers to the assassination of the director Rafael Trujillo in 1961, which led to the first major exodus of Dominicans to the United States. García’s wounded but still standing angel celebrated the possibility of a better future.

Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art, 2013
Description in Spanish

Las opulentas pinturas y dibujos de García evocan los relatos a la vez trágicos y llenos de esperanza que impulsan a la inmigración. Las figuras de mestizos angélicos son para la artista arquetipos de los pueblos de las Américas. En Santo Trujillo is Dead, García se refiere al asesinato del dictador Rafael Trujillo en 1961, que dio lugar al primer gran éxodo de dominicanos a los Estados Unidos. Este ángel de García, herido pero todavía en pie, celebra la posibilidad de un futuro mejor.

Nuestra América: la presencia latina en el arte estadounidense, 2013

Related Books

OurAmerica_500.jpg
Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art
Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art explores how Latino artists shaped the artistic movements of their day and recalibrated key themes in American art and culture. This beautifully illustrated volume presents the rich and varied contributions of Latino artists in the United States since the mid-twentieth century, when the concept of a collective Latino identity began to emerge. Our America includes works by artists who participated in all the various artistic styles and movements, including abstract expressionism; activist, conceptual, and performance art; and classic American genres such as landscape, portraiture, and scenes of everyday life. 

Exhibitions

Media - 2011.12 - SAAM-2011.12_1 - 77591
Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art
October 25, 2013–March 2, 2014
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art presents the rich and varied contributions of Latino artists in the United States since the mid-twentieth century, when the concept of a collective Latino identity began to emerge.