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Nick Quijano Torres, (b. 1953), “Memories of the Veteran”, Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, 1984, Lac…
Memories of the Veteran
Nick Quijano Torres, (b. 1953), “Memories of the Veteran”, Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, 1984, Lac…
Nick Quijano Torres, (b. 1953), “Memories of the Veteran”, Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, 1984, Lacquered gouache on paper, 12 1/4 × 12 1/4 in., Collection American Folk Art Museum, New York, Gift of Dorothea and Leo Rabkin, 1984.2.1.
Record Details

Memories of the Veteran

Artist ((b. 1953))
Date1984
Place/RegionOld San Juan, Puerto Rico
MediumLacquered gouache on paper
Dimensions12 1/4 × 12 1/4"
Credit LineGift of Dorothea and Leo Rabkin
Accession number1984.2.1
CopyrightCopyright for this work is under review.
Description

Nick Quijano Torres appreciates the universal appeal of small moments that communicate on a deeply personal level. He paints his life: born in New York City to Puerto Rican parents, he spent his summers on "La Isla del Encanto," the enchanted island, through elementary school, when the family returned full-time to the island. He calls his paintings "collages" of memories from childhood. In this scene, he depicts himself standing beside his beloved grandmother on one side and his sister on the other; the three figures are connected through the children’s trusting touch. A portrait of his uncle Juan, a veteran, hangs above the family grouping, a gentle reminder of Puerto Rico’s steadfast contribution to safeguarding the American way of life. Torres views his art that invokes people from his past and present as a corrective; the story of his mixed race culture that he found was missing from the art he encountered in formal museum settings.

Stacy C. Hollander, “Nick Quijano Torres,” exhibition brochure for American Perspectives: Stories from the American Folk Art Museum Collection (New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2020).

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated with new research. Records are reviewed and revised, and the American Folk Art Museum welcomes additional information. 

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