Señora Dolores Treviño
Artist:
Jesse Treviño
(American, 1946 - 2023)
Date: 1983
Medium: Acrylic on canvas
Dimensions:
53 1/2 x 85 1/2 in. (135.9 x 217.2 cm)
Credit Line: San Antonio Museum of Art, Purchased with funds from Guy Bodine, Charles Butt, Dr. Alfonso Chiscano, George Cortez, Dr. Burton Grossman, Carolyn Harte, Sarah Harte, Frank Herrera, Rosemary Kowalski, Lionel Sosa, Marshall and Patsy Steves, Domingo Vara, and Juan Vasquez
Object number: 94.16
Copyright: © Jesse Treviño
Label Text
Clad in an apron and clutching a laundry basket at her hip, a woman stares boldly at the viewer. She is the artist’s mother, Dolores Treviño, whom he honors through a heroic portrait that monumentalizes everyday experience and dignifies her labor as a mother and wife. Jesse Treviño first gained attention in the 1970s for his photorealistic paintings that depict people in San Antonio’s West Side neighborhood and celebrate Mexican American history, culture, and community. After tragically losing his right arm after an explosion during the Vietnam War, Treviño masterfully re-learned to paint left-handed.
(Lana Meador, 2022)
"She worked 24 hours, making our lunch to go to
school, washing our clothes. Those were 24 hours -
my mother never had - until she got much older she
had time for herself and found out - discovered herself
. . . She was the best teacher. If I had a choice, I would
say I want her as my teacher because the things that I
learned from her are the most important and basic things
that you want your kids to learn, you know what I'm
saying? About treating people with respect, and being
humble, and you know all, all of that stayed with us
because of her."
Jesse Treviño
Treviño's gratitude to his mother is humbly expressed in this dignified portrait of her. Her stature as the hardworking devotee of her husband and their 12 children is reflected through her noble stance and proud facial expression. Reinforcing this sense of heroism is the dramatic sweep of the windblown laundry on the clothesline, which resembles the swirling drapery folds commonly found in ancient sculptures or Old Master paintings of mythological gods and goddesses.
Treviño also credits his mother with helping him survive a difficult period after losing his right hand from an explosion that occurred during his military duty in Vietnam. Right-handed by birth, Treviño had to learn how to paint with his left hand, something he had clearly mastered by the time he created this portrait.
(David Rubin, Label Text 2008)
(Lana Meador, 2022)
"She worked 24 hours, making our lunch to go to
school, washing our clothes. Those were 24 hours -
my mother never had - until she got much older she
had time for herself and found out - discovered herself
. . . She was the best teacher. If I had a choice, I would
say I want her as my teacher because the things that I
learned from her are the most important and basic things
that you want your kids to learn, you know what I'm
saying? About treating people with respect, and being
humble, and you know all, all of that stayed with us
because of her."
Jesse Treviño
Treviño's gratitude to his mother is humbly expressed in this dignified portrait of her. Her stature as the hardworking devotee of her husband and their 12 children is reflected through her noble stance and proud facial expression. Reinforcing this sense of heroism is the dramatic sweep of the windblown laundry on the clothesline, which resembles the swirling drapery folds commonly found in ancient sculptures or Old Master paintings of mythological gods and goddesses.
Treviño also credits his mother with helping him survive a difficult period after losing his right hand from an explosion that occurred during his military duty in Vietnam. Right-handed by birth, Treviño had to learn how to paint with his left hand, something he had clearly mastered by the time he created this portrait.
(David Rubin, Label Text 2008)
On view
In Collection(s)
The San Antonio Museum of Art is in the process of digitizing its permanent collection. This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect SAMA's complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of such records is ongoing.
This resource has been made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the Human Endeavor.
