DepartmentTextiles-United States & Canada
El Molino “end of an era” (the mill)
Namecolcha embroidery with pictorial narrative
Artist
Josephine Lobato
(born 1936)
Date2018
Place madeSan Luis, COLORADO, United States, North America
Mediumwool yarn on plain-woven cotton foundation
Dimensions22.5” x 17.5”
Credit LineGift of Josephine Lobato
Object numberA.2025.23.2
Collections
ProvenanceGift of the artist
DescriptionDescription from artist as recorded by Suzanne MacAulay: The mill in San Luis, Colorado, was a regional destination for many farmers in the San Luis Valley during the 19th century until mid-twentieth. It was abandoned in the 1950s when commercial flour replaced milled flour. It burned down in 1960. The fire was memorialized by Josie, but inspired by her sister's memory. The collage-like patch in the upper left-hand corner depicts the mill in its prime. 'El Molino' has all the drama of the moment and the embroidered ‘insert’ shows how it was central to life in the Valley when it was built in 1860. The river on the left is the Culebra flowing out of the Culebra Mountains.
This embroidery served as one of the marketing images for the retrospective exhibit Mi Vida En Colcha, see object file for postcard.
ca.1937
