About the Artist
Andrew Montoya is an award-winning artist who was born and raised in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Living in the village of Agua Fria most of his life, he started learning about Spanish colonial art at nine years of age after the sudden death of his mother. He was mentored by his aunt, world-renowned artist Arlene Cisneros Sena. Montoya spent his summers painting and learning about saints and devotional art. Montoya entered his first piece in youth Spanish market at the age of 14, earning the Bienvenidos Award for first-time showing artists.
Montoya never wanted to paint saints. “I liked the devotional arts, but I wanted to carve and no one could teach me.” He remembers kneeling on a homemade dresser and praying to the porcelain statues at his grandparents’ house. “They were bloody and scary, their faces looked so sad and were full of emotion.” It was at that time he learned to carve. Montoya cut piñon trees in the open field by his home and practiced carving with chisels borrowed from his grandfather, cutting himself multiple times.
Montoya spent a portion of his summers at Spanish Market studying the techniques of older artisanos carving under a tent. They had a name, “La Escuelita” (the school), and one particular man artist, Manuel Lopez, was sculpting a bulto depicting Saint James on a horse. “That’s when I fell in love with carving, and I would not leave that spot until I gleaned all I could, and then some.” Montoya spent two days, from the opening of the Market until closing, asking questions and watching each shaving fall to the grass below.
Montoya has been participating in the Adult category of Spanish Market since age 19. He has won numerous awards, and his art is in both private and public collections. His art is in a number of states as well as parishes in New Mexico, most notably the processional cross for the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi in Santa Fe. His studio is in Rio Rancho. He also mentors young individuals who express an interest in devotional arts. “I do my best to share techniques and keep our traditions alive. Without anyone to teach the methods to the youth, the art will die.” He recently taught a retablo-making class to students at Santa Nino Catholic School with the assistance of a grant from Crayola. He mentors his two nieces, Kianna Trujillo and Hailey Valdivia, who participate in Youth Spanish Market every year.
A full-time nurse practicing in Albuquerque, Montoya and his wife, Jennifer, reside in Rio Rancho; they are the proud parents of two wonderful children, Xavier and Avina. Montoya continues to be an advocate of the traditional arts and participates in multiple shows around the state. He believes in giving back to the community, supporting a number of foundations by donating his art for worthy causes.
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
I feel like my art is an expression of my life’s stories. In some ways, I believe my journey started like that of a forced marriage: My Aunt did not allow me to choose if I wanted to learn to paint; rather, I was given a brush and told to paint. Without my transcendence into devotional arts, I believe I could not live my life to its fullest expression. I try to tell a story with each piece, and use my most favorite art renditions for guidance and inspiration.
PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
Denver Art Museum, Denver
Museum of International Folk Art, Santa Fe
Museum of Spanish Colonial Art, Santa Fe
Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi, Santa Fe
Santa Maria de la Paz Catholic Community, Santa Fe
The Archdiocese of Santa Fe, Albuquerque
Honors and Awards
1999 Spanish Market, Youth Bienvenidos Award: “San Francisco de Assisi”
2009 Spanish Market, Archbishop Award: “The Battle of Good and Evil”
2010 Spanish Market, First Place, Painted Bultos: “San Isidro Labrador”
2011 Spanish Market, First Place, Bultos en Nicho: “The Visitation of Mary”
2011 Spanish Market, First Place, Painted Bultos: “Our lady of Mt. Carmel Appears to St. Simon Stock”
2012 Spanish Market, Honorable Mention, Painted Bultos: “La Conquistadora”
2014 Spanish Market, First Place, Painted Bultos: “Entierro de Cristo”
2017 Spanish Market, First Place, Painted Bultos: “The Meeting of St. Dominic and St. Francis”
2017 Spanish Market, Museum Purchase Award: “The Meeting of St. Dominic and St. Francis”
2017 Spanish Market, Second Place, Painted Bultos: “Santo Nino De Atocha”
2018 Spanish Market, First Place, Painted Bultos en Nicho: “Nuestra Senora De Los Dolores”
2018 Spanish Market, First Place, Painted Bultos: “Nuestra Senora De Los Dolores”
2018 Spanish Market, Second Place, Painted Bultos “San Juan Nepuceno”
2018 Spanish Market, Collaboration Award: “Nuestra Senora De Guadalupe jewelry box”
2018 Spanish Market, Boeckman Award for new Design: “Nuestra Senora De Guadalupe jewelry box”
2019 Spanish Market, First Place, Painted Bultos: “Nuestra Senora De Guadalupe”
2019 Spanish Market, Boeckman Award for new Design: “ San Jose the holy Father”
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2015 Donation for Santa Fe Archbishop Scholarship Dinner: “St. Francis y Los Niños”
2015 “The Saints From a Land So Remote,” March 13 - May 3, LA Projects Lanshut, Germany
2016 Spanish Market Pop Gallery Group Show
2016 “¡Órale! The Rise of Post-Pop Art,” September, Hardwood Museum, Taos
2016 Archbishop of Santa Fe, Commission, Banner
2017 “Time Travelers: And the Saints Go Marching On,” November 2017 - April 2018
2018 Cultural Exchange Project, Smithsonian, Washington D.C.
2019 “ Que Chola” Hispanic Cultural Art Center, Albuquerque NM
2020 City of Albuquerque Spanish Market purchase for public Art - April 2021