Humane Borders Water Station

Delilah Montoya, Humane Borders Water Station, 2004, printed 2008, inkjet print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Gilberto Cardenas Latino Art Collection, 2011.52.2, © 2004, Delilah Montoya
Delilah Montoya, Humane Borders Water Station, 2004, printed 2008, inkjet print, image: 1947 12 in. (48.3120.7 cm) sheet: 2452 78 in. (61.0134.4 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Gilberto Cardenas Latino Art Collection, 2011.52.2, © 2004, Delilah Montoya

Artwork Details

Title
Humane Borders Water Station
Date
2004, printed 2008
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
image: 1947 12 in. (48.3120.7 cm) sheet: 2452 78 in. (61.0134.4 cm)
Copyright
© 2004, Delilah Montoya
Credit Line
Gift of the Gilberto Cardenas Latino Art Collection
Mediums Description
inkjet print
Classifications
Subjects
  • Landscape — mountain
  • Landscape — weather — cloud
Object Number
2011.52.2

Artwork Description

Montoya’s rough-hewn landscapes recall the work of nineteenth-century photographers that presented uninhabited views of the U.S. western frontier. She shot Desire Lines, Baboquivari Peak, AZ on the Tohono O’odham Reservation, an indigenous nation that resides on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. One member, concerned about the fate of border crossers within his own tribe, peppers the landscape with water-filled jugs. In these photographs, Montoya poses ethical questions about the nature of national borders.


Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art, 2013
Description in Spanish

Los paisajes escabrosos de Montoya recuerdan las fotografías del siglo XIX que presentaban el paisaje de la frontera oeste de los Estados Unidos como un sitio deshabitado. La fotografía Desire Lines, Baboquivari Peak, AZ fue tomada en la reservación Tohono O’odham, una nación indígena que reside en ambos lados de la frontera entre México y Estados Unidos. Un miembro de la tribu, preocupado por la suerte de aquellos en su comunidad que cruzan la frontera, reparte jarras llenas de agua por el campo. En estas fotografías, Montoya plantea cuestiones éticas sobre la naturaleza de las fronteras nacionales.

Nuestra América: la presencia latina en el arte estadounidense, 2013

Works by this artist (55 items)

Ellsworth Kelly, Yellow, 1964-1965, lithograph, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Woodward Foundation, 1977.48.30
Yellow
Date1964-1965
lithograph
Not on view
Ellsworth Kelly, Red Blue, 1964, screenprint, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Woodward Foundation, 1977.48.28
Red Blue
Date1964
screenprint
Not on view
Ellsworth Kelly, Red over Yellow, 1964-1965, lithograph, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Woodward Foundation, 1977.48.29
Red over Yellow
Date1964-1965
lithograph
Not on view

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      This audio podcast series discusses artworks and themes in the exhibition Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. In this episode, artist Delilah Montoya talks about her photographs Humane Borders and Desire Lines.

      Related Books

      OurAmerica_500.jpg
      Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art
      Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art explores how Latino artists shaped the artistic movements of their day and recalibrated key themes in American art and culture. This beautifully illustrated volume presents the rich and varied contributions of Latino artists in the United States since the mid-twentieth century, when the concept of a collective Latino identity began to emerge. Our America includes works by artists who participated in all the various artistic styles and movements, including abstract expressionism; activist, conceptual, and performance art; and classic American genres such as landscape, portraiture, and scenes of everyday life. 

      Exhibitions

      Media - 2011.12 - SAAM-2011.12_1 - 77591
      Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art
      October 25, 2013March 2, 2014
      Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art presents the rich and varied contributions of Latino artists in the United States since the mid-twentieth century, when the concept of a collective Latino identity began to emerge.

      More Artworks from the Collection

      Bohyun Yoon, Glass Tube, 2012, glass, stainless steel, blowtorch, acrylic paint, and digital video, color, sound; 2:05 minutes, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Giselle and Ben Huberman, 2012.57A-L, © 2012, Bohyun Yoon
      Glass Tube
      Date2012
      glass, stainless steel, blowtorch, acrylic paint, and digital video, color, sound; 2:05 minutes
      Not on view
      Marvin Oliver, Salish Clam Basket, 2008, glass, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Sharon Karmazin, 2021.28
      Salish Clam Basket
      Date2008
      glass
      On view
      Killer Whale Hat
      Date2002
      blown and sand carved glass
      Not on view
      Ché Rhodes, Untitled, 2007, glass, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Merrily Orsini and Frederick Heath, 2021.57A-D
      Untitled
      Date2007
      glass
      On view