Vicente Telles is a santero and cultural iconographer who is driven by the desire to honor the culture and traditions of his native New Mexico. He began painting traditional retablos using natural pigments created from clays and minerals on homemade gesso, which is then sealed with an archival varnish. Always looking for ways to push boundaries, his style has evolved to include various reinterpretations of traditional Catholic and cultural iconography, which is evident in his social commentary retablos and his ongoing border culture series. His experimentation with different mediums—such as textiles, high quality papers, and found and repurposed materials—lead to the creation of more contemporary pieces. To Telles, his practice is much more than painting: “Being a santero and cultural iconographer means being a teacher, a student, and an observer of tradition and maker of the contemporary.” In this way, his traditional and contemporary pieces allow Telles to do his part in keeping his heritage and centuries of tradition alive and vibrant. Telles’ work can be found in private and public collections in the United States and abroad.

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