Vita Rose photographs of Guadalupe de la Cruz Rios and family

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Summary: This collection includes photographic prints made by Vita Rose circa 1996 of Doña Guadalupe de la Cruz Rios and her family in Nayarit, Mexico. Guadalupe de la Cruz Rios was a Wixarika (Huichol) visual artist, musician, and spiritual leader.

Guadalupe de La Cruz Rios: Guadalupe de La Cruz Rios: Guadalupe de la Cruz Rios (1917-1999) was a Wixarika (Huichol) maraka'ame (shaman) and internationally renowned artist and musician. She was known as a gifted teacher, healer, singer, artist, and ceremonial leader who led yearly pilgrimages, Wiricuta, the sacred land of the Wixarika (Huichol) community. She died on Mother's Day, 1999.
Vita Rose: Photographer Vita Rose first encountered Guadalupe de la Cruz Rios in 1996 while traveling to Nayarit, Mexico with a group of pilgrims from California. The group accompanied a Wixarika (Huichol) pilgrimage to Wiricuta, and Rose was invited to take photographs by Doña Guadalupe. Rose subsequently participated in two additional pilgrimages to Wiricuta and stayed with the de la Cruz Rios family on their ranchos and homes in town. She went on to live in Nayarit, Mexico for two years before returning to the United States and settling in Arizona.

Citation: Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Vita Rose photographs of Guadalupe de la Cruz Rios and family, image #, NMAI.AC.372; National Museum of the American Indian Archives Center, Smithsonian Institution.

Processing Information: Processed by Rachel Menyuk, Processing Archivist, 2024.

Rights: Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archives Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not modified in any way, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian. For more information please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use and NMAI Archive Center's Digital Image request website.

Scope and Contents: This collection includes 19 color photographic prints taken between 1996 and 1999. The majority of the photographs are of Guadalupe de la Cruz Rios during pilgrimages to the sacred high desert site of Wirikuta (Wiricuta). Rose titled each photograph and included a narrative description for each image based on her personal experiences with de la Cruz Rios and her family. Additional family and community members photographed by Rose include—Dona Manuela and her great-grandson Cristian; niece Maria Felix and her children Oscar, Laura, Umberto, and Matchua; and Xochil with her Aunt Doña Cuca. The photographs also include Wixarika (Huichol) ceremonial practices and items used during the pilgrimage to Wirikuta (Wiricuta).

Restrictions: Access to NMAI Archives Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).

Related Materials: The National Museum of the American Indian has four yarn paintings attributed to Guadalupe de la Cruz Ríos. These include catalog numbers 26/2619, 26/2624, 26/2626, and 26/6986.

NMAI.AC.372

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sv4b7fc69d7-f897-4991-87f1-3aea287111d0

NMAI.AC.372

NMAIA