Cultural Convergence in New Mexico

Cultural Convergence in New Mexico is a volume in honor of William Wroth (1938–2019), whose career as a cultural historian and curator contributed greatly to our understanding of Spanish Colonial art in the Americas. Wroth’s book Hispanic Crafts of the Southwest (1977) built upon E. Boyd’s work by bringing contemporary practitioners of the traditional arts into the discussion, and Christian Images in Hispanic New Mexico (1982) changed the course of scholarship on the artistic style of New Mexican religious imagery. Wroth’s endeavors were not limited to Spanish Colonial art. In 2000, Wroth’s exhibition and book Ute Indian Arts and Culture from Prehistory to the New Millennium were considered groundbreaking for placing Ute art in the context of Ute history and world view. In 2010, he brought together years of research to the exhibition and book Converging Streams: Art of the Hispanic and Native American Southwest. Wroth also wrote poetry and about poetry, and helped found the poetry review Coyote’s Journal. This volume explores themes important to Wroth broadly related to the art, history, and culture of New Spain, as well as cross-cultural interactions of Hispanos and Native Americans. With more than 180 color illustrations, Cultural Convergence presents interdisciplinary essays by an esteemed group of scholars and writers, and a selection of works by artists he knew and admired. In addition, Wroth selected the essayists; many are colleagues he worked with over the years. They include Donna Pierce and Robin Farwell Gavin (volume editors), Richard I. Ford, Klinton Burgio-Ericson, David L. Shaul and Scott G. Ortman, José Antonio Esquibel, Cristina Cruz González, Rick Hendricks, John L. Kessell, Victor Dan Jaramillo, Don J. Usner, Lane Coulter, Jonathan Batkin, Enrique R. Lamadrid and Miguel A. Gandert, Orlando Romero, Jack Loeffler, and John Brandi.

Robin Farwell Gavin has worked in the field of Spanish Colonial art history for over thirty years. She served as curator of Spanish Colonial art at the Museum of International Folk Art and as chief curator at the Museum of Spanish Colonial Art, both in Santa Fe. Her publications include Converging Streams: Art of the Hispanic and Native American Southwest (with William Wroth) and Cerámica y Cultura: The Story of Spanish and Mexican Mayólica (with Donna Pierce and Alfonso Pleguezuelo). Donna Pierce is former Frederick and Jan Mayer Curator of Spanish Colonial Art and head of the New World Department at the Denver Art Museum. She served as curator at the Museum of Spanish Colonial Art, the Palace of the Governors, and the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe. She has published extensively and coauthored Cerámica y Cultura: The Story of Spanish and Mexican Mayólica, Painting a New World: Mexican Art and Life, and Transforming Images: New Mexican Santos in-between Worlds.