A Land So Remote : Religious Art of New Mexico 1780-1907

by Larry Frank, Charles Bennett, David Skolkin

Volume 1 of A Land So Remote elegantly illustrates the development of religious art in northern New Mexico during an active period of over 125 years. To sustain their faith when they came to the New World, the Spanish relied on santos, visual representations of saints, to alleviate their loneliness and enrich their lives. The result is a uniquely American art that embodies the religious spirit and aspirations of New Mexico's Spanish immigrants, whose enduring faith helped them cope with the rigors of a harsh and dangerous frontier life. With roots in Spanish baroque style, the pieces illustrated in this book played an important role in church, community, and family. Many of these rare and beautiful works of art have never been published. With hundreds of color photographs of works from four museums and numerous private collections, A Land So Remote is vital to any art library and as a reference for collectors.

256 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 2001

Reviews

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Land so Remote by Larry Frank.
I first fell in love with santos (folk carved saint figures of southern CO and New Mexico) in the 1970s. At that time, there were only a few books and illustrations available. Most were small booklets meant to complement a specific museum's collection. As the collections were mothballed, so were their illustrated books. I purchased this 3 volume set and couldn't be happier. It's much newer, larger, and most of the pictured santos are not found in the earlier volumes I have. I hope these books will become more widely known by those interested in history of the Southwest US, folk art, Hispanic culture, and retablos and bultos. The 3rd volume is about wooden tools and artifacts from the same area and period. I just wish more attention would have been given to the furniture in that volume.