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Traitor, Survivor, Icon: The Legacy of La Malinche
The first major visual and cultural exploration of the legacy of La Malinche, simultaneously reviled as a traitor to her people and hailed as the mother of Mexico
“Malinche herself comes through. She is not an idea or a myth but a person. And she is ablaze with life.”—Angelica Aboulhosn, Humanities
An enslaved Indigenous girl who became Hernán Cortés’s interpreter and cultural translator, Malinche stood at center stage in one of the most significant events of modern history. Linguistically gifted, she played a key role in the transactions, negotiations, and conflicts between the Spanish and the Indigenous populations of Mexico that shaped the course of global politics for centuries to come. As mother to Cortés’s firstborn son, she became the symbolic progenitor of a modern Mexican nation and a heroine to Chicana and Mexicana artists.
Traitor, Survivor, Icon is the first major publication to present a comprehensive visual exploration of Malinche’s enduring impact on communities living on both sides of the US-Mexico border. Five hundred years after her death, her image and legacy remain relevant to conversations around female empowerment, indigeneity, and national identity throughout the Americas. This book establishes and examines her symbolic import and the ways in which artists, scholars, and activists have appropriated her image to interpret and express their own experiences and agendas, from the 1500s through today.
Published in association with the Denver Art Museum
Exhibition
Denver Art Museum
(February 6–May 8, 2022)
Albuquerque Museum
(June 11–September 4, 2022)
San Antonio Museum of Art
(October 14, 2022–January 8, 2023)
“Malinche herself comes through. She is not an idea or a myth but a person. And she is ablaze with life.”—Angelica Aboulhosn, Humanities
An enslaved Indigenous girl who became Hernán Cortés’s interpreter and cultural translator, Malinche stood at center stage in one of the most significant events of modern history. Linguistically gifted, she played a key role in the transactions, negotiations, and conflicts between the Spanish and the Indigenous populations of Mexico that shaped the course of global politics for centuries to come. As mother to Cortés’s firstborn son, she became the symbolic progenitor of a modern Mexican nation and a heroine to Chicana and Mexicana artists.
Traitor, Survivor, Icon is the first major publication to present a comprehensive visual exploration of Malinche’s enduring impact on communities living on both sides of the US-Mexico border. Five hundred years after her death, her image and legacy remain relevant to conversations around female empowerment, indigeneity, and national identity throughout the Americas. This book establishes and examines her symbolic import and the ways in which artists, scholars, and activists have appropriated her image to interpret and express their own experiences and agendas, from the 1500s through today.
Published in association with the Denver Art Museum
Exhibition
Denver Art Museum
(February 6–May 8, 2022)
Albuquerque Museum
(June 11–September 4, 2022)
San Antonio Museum of Art
(October 14, 2022–January 8, 2023)
- GenresNonfictionHistory
224 pages, Hardcover
Published March 1, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 5, 2026
The compilation of essays, visual artworks & poems provide an excellent range & depth to the treatment of La Malinche’s narrative into the present. The only negative was the academia formation leading to reiteration; the intros preface what is later discussed rather than letting it be delved into straight way, elongating or over explaining the text
September 9, 2023
I was lucky enough to be able to see this art exhibit in person. This book compliments the experience very well and makes Malinche and her legacy even more powerful. Still, I highly recommend this book even if you didn't see the exhibit.
July 21, 2022
This is actually a beautifully bound hardback with full color images and bilingual translations. Just personally, I found the content hard to get through as it’s not a happy read.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews