Mi Retablo

Translation:
"My dear Virgen of Guadalupe, blessed you are for granting me a miracle when, while surfing, a white shark ate my friend instead of me, despite the fact that I was the one who was bleeding."

Thanks to Sedora for hooking me up with this custom job! I can only hope that if I ever see Whitey, he'll be as friendly looking as this little guy, and of course I'll be getting shacked with my fins on backwards.

About the paintings:
These colorful paintings on tin come from the 500-year-old tradition of votive paintings, ex-vos or retablos. They are traditionally commissioned in trade for services, to tell the miraculous tale and give thanks to the intervening saint
for answered prayers, miracles. They depict life’s nearly-tragic stories and the realities of survival, with humor, honesty and charm. Their work blends Mexico's traditional popular art with their own contemporary take on modern day culture. They tackle such themes as emigration, homosexuality, prostitution, substance abuse, dog bites, bus accidents, urban violence, infidelity, jealousies and runaway pigs.

About the artists:
Hugo Aledo, Daniel Alonso, and Luis Angel Vilchis are sons of the well-known contemporary self-taught painter Alfredo Vilchis Roque. They live in a working class barrio in Mexico City, and have learned the trade and tradi tion from their father, whose work is exhibited and commissioned throughout Mexico. Their work has been shown internationally, along with their fathers, in Mexico City, Paris, Miami, Chicago, and Seattle.

Check the gallery