Сатурнино Эрран: Мексикалық суретшінің өмірі мен шығармашылығы

Saturnino Herrán Guinchard (9 July 1887 – 8 October 1918) was a Mexican painter influential to Latin culture in the late 19th and early 20th century.

Born a mix of Indigenous Mexican and Swiss descent, Saturnino Herrán was raised in Aguascalientes, a city in North Central Mexico ingrained with Spanish culture. His father owned "the only bookstore in the city" and was a professor of bookkeeping at The Academy of Science". At the age of ten, he was exceptional in drawing, painting, and draftsmanship. In 1903, when he was sixteen, his father died. Two years later, the family moved to Mexico City where he studied painting further and began to teach. At 25 years old, he met Rosario Arellano, his future wife, who occasionally acted as a figure model for pieces like Mujer en Tehuantepec (1914). At the height of his career in 1914, they were married. There is little that is known about their marriage other than it appeared to be "congruent" and "enlightened". Together they had one son, José Francisco. Herrán completed majestic paintings of Mexican Indigenous people, giving them heroic strength, beauty, and dignity. In 1910, he participated in the exhibition commemorating the Centennial Anniversary of Mexico's Independence. A desire to be a mural painter appeared during his career, and in 1911 he completed commissioned large scale, mural like paintings. Herrán died suddenly in Mexico City on 8 October 1918, at the age of 31, "from a gastric complication".

In 1901 Herrán began taking drawing lessons at the Aguascalientes Academy of Science where his father worked. José Inés Tovilla and Severo Amador helped teach him both drawing and painting. In 1903, his father died. He and his mother moved to Mexico City, where he worked at a telegraph office to support her and took classes from Julio Ruelas at the Academy of San Carlos. He then studied draughtsmanship under Antonio Fabres, a Catalan painter and color under Mexican colorist Germán Gedovius. His work was highly inspired by European theories of modern art including Greek and Roman aesthetics and a high degree of naturalism. He was an "outstanding student" receiving "honorable mentions" in multiple courses. The Offering (1913) exemplifies Mexican modernism with its allegorical allusion to life's journey. It displays a punt boat in a canal filled with zempasúchitl flowers (a marigold that is traditionally associated with death). Featured are a baby, a youthful man, and an elderly man offering the flowers for the dead. This is a reference to ofrenda, a tradition deeply connected to Mexico's Dia de los Muertos, a celebration of ancestry that is said to connect the living to the dead. Each character represents a different stage of life, but they are all following the same end destination and respecting their course. When Herran died, his widowed wife requested The Offering yet it was taken to the National Fine Arts Institute. Herrán's works gave credence to the "spiritual beauty of the native people of Mexico in exquisite drawings of Indians whose languid silhouettes stand out against freely interpreted backgrounds of Pre Columbian sculpture." These ideologies were painted by fellow artists Orozco and Rivera, making them illustrious in the art world. As mentioned above, he went on to create commissioned murals for the School of Arts and Crafts. His works were used as model for future muralists throughout the 1920s and 1930s. In Herrán's famous triptych Our Gods (1914 1918), he displayed legendary Aztec goddess Coatlicue, who, according to legend, gave birth to the sun, moon, stars. It was commissioned for the Palace of Fine Arts in Mexico City. The mural is sixteen feet tall with multiple panels. Latin and Caucasian races are showcased on both sides, yet it draws the eyes of the viewer in to engage with the center panel, Coatlicue Transformed. Jesus Christ, God of the early Christians is in the center of the goddess. Hands, hearts, skulls and crosses are displayed along with lilies, which are representative of Christian spirituality. The piece is a fusion of both cultures as all races on both sides are turned worshiping one god like figure with one Aztec and one European reference to a higher power. Christ and Coatlicue coalesce in "a vivid expression of his theme concerning the mixture of the two races"

Saturnino paved the way for artists like Orozco and Rivera by creating masterpieces with deep, relatable meaning. Stylistically, he painted his strengths and used well cultured techniques from years of learning with Spanish, European, and Catalan influence. Herran used free brushwork over his drawings to capture vibrations of light He blurred certain background colors together to create ambiance. He preferred strong contours, dynamic imagery, and color balanced. "The refinement of Herran's draughtsmanship and use of colour balances the naturalistic imagery in these works combining drawing with watercolour, a technique adapted from Spanish painters such as Néstor de la Torre". Along with integrating well developed techniques, his work displays a deep knowledge of the human psyche. His art links eminence and dignity to Mexican heritage. It has brought deep meaning to teaching the value of cultural acceptance and gives insight into the brevity of human life for every viewer to relate to.