NMSU art museum exhibit explores the ‘Trinities of Heaven and Earth’

20250620-venue-v06trinities — Tin retablos can be quite fragile, which was taken into account when hanging them. This was done by placing the pieces between four nails.

Elizabeth Secor Elizabeth Secor Elizabeth Secor Journal Staff Writer

Published June 19, 2025 - 4:00 p.m. Modified June 19, 2025 - 4:00 p.m.

'Trinities of Heaven and Earth'

‘Trinities of

Heaven and Earth’

WHEN: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday; through March 7, 2026

WHERE: NMSU University Art Museum, 1308 East University Ave., Las Cruces

HOW MUCH: Free, uam.nmsu.edu

New Mexico State University is moving heaven and earth with a new art exhibit focusing on the concept of trinities.

On March 21, “Trinities of Heaven and Earth,” opened in the University Art Museum at New Mexico State University. The exhibit was curated by NMSU alumni and current Master of Arts student at the University of Oklahoma, Olivia Juedeman.

The exhibit is curated around Mexican retablos, small devotional paintings traditionally displayed in households. They serve as expressions of the Catholic faith, with depictions of the Holy Family on some and the Holy Trinity on others.

“The imagery of the Holy Family conveys blessings related to family life, while depictions of the Holy Trinity invoke divine guidance,” the museum said in a news release. “Together, these themes explore the connection between sacred devotion and earthly life, bridging the divine and the domestic.”

Juedeman became interested in comparing and contrasting the two trinities, with the Holy Family being more “a human, earthly trinity,” and the Holy Trinity being more a “divine, heavenly trinity.”

“I just wanted to explore the similarities and differences between the two,” Juedeman said. “And I thought it was an interesting juxtaposition.”

The pieces came from the museum’s collection of over 2,200 Mexican retablos, which Juedeman worked on as part of a separate, grant-funded project to completely digitize the collection prior to the exhibition.

“When I looked it up in our database, I think we had about, I would say, maybe 100 of each of the two themes. And then I narrowed that down to doing about 40 of each of them,” Juedeman said.

When Juedeman was selecting pieces to display, she considered uniqueness, symbolism and condition.

Juedeman finds the collection relevant to the surrounding community.

“I know a lot of people come from Mexico to here, whether they’re just visiting or they’ve moved here,” Juedeman said. “And I think it just relates back to the history of Mexico and how people express their faith and devotion, and the idea of like altars for devotion within the home.”