Transforming Images: New Mexican Santos In-Between Worlds examines cultural identity in New Spain in a postcolonial frame- work. Bringing together a wealth of new material, the book examines painted and carved images of saints made by indigenous artists in New Mexico between the 18th and 20th centuries. The essays collected in the book explore the development of these devotional instruments in New Mexico from around 1760 until the radical transformation of the tradition in the 20th century. Professor Farago (with Donna Pierce, curator of Spanish colonial art at the Denver Art Museum) makes three key arguments. First, she demonstrates how these New Mexican images have continued to have importance for artists working in a variety of media. Second, she demonstrates that we can better understand these art objects by bringing to bear the theoretical perspectives associated with post-colonial studies. Third, she shows how the history of these New Mexican materials provide an excellent case study for rethinking the nature of art history as a whole; these humble objects, often ignored by art historians, provide a way to reconceive the discipline.
