Juan Luna de San Pedro y Novicio
Juan Luna c. 1899
Birth name	Juan Luna y Novicio
Born	October 23, 1857 (1857-10-23) Badoc, Ilocos Norte, Philippines
Died	December 7, 1899 (1899-12-08) (aged 42) Hong Kong
Field	Painting, drawing, sculpting
Movement	Romanticism, Realism
Works	Spoliarium, 1884, The Death of Cleopatra, 1881 El Pacto de Sangre, 1884 La Batalla de Lepanto, 1887 The Parisian Life, 1892 in museums: National Museum of the Philippines Ayala Museum Metropolitan Museum of Manila Lopez Museum Government Service Insurance System Malacañang Palace

Juan Luna y Novicio (October 23, 1857 — December 7, 1899) was an Ilocano Filipino painter, sculptor and a political activist of the Philippine Revolution during the late 19th century. He became one of the first recognized Philippine artists.

His winning the gold medal in the 1884 Madrid Exposition of Fine Arts, along with the silver win of fellow Filipino painter Félix Resurrección Hidalgo, prompted a celebration which was a major highlight in the memoirs of members of the Propaganda Movement, with the fellow Ilustrados toasting to the two painters' good health and to the brotherhood between Spain and the Philippines.

Regarded for work done in the manner of the Spanish and French academies of his time, Luna painted literary and historical scenes, some with an underscore of political commentary. His allegorical works were inspired with classical balance, and often showed figures in theatrical poses.

Early life[link]

Juan Luna, self portrait.

Born in the town of Badoc, Ilocos Norte in the northern Philippines, Juan Luna was the third among the seven children of Don Joaquin Luna de San Pedro y Posadas and Doña Laureana Novicio y Ancheta. In 1861, the Luna family moved to Manila and he went to Ateneo Municipal de Manila where he obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree. He excelled in painting and drawing, and was influenced by his brother, Manuel Luna, who, according to Filipino patriot José Rizal, was a better painter than Juan himself.

Luna enrolled at Escuela Nautica de Manila (now Philippine Merchant Marine Academy) and became a sailor. He took drawing lessons under the illustrious painting teacher Lorenzo Guerrero of Ermita, Manila. He also enrolled in the Academy of Fine Arts (Academia de Dibujo y Pintura) in Manila where he was influenced and taught how to draw by the Spanish artist Agustin Saez. Unfortunately, Luna's vigorous brush strokes displeased his teacher and Luna was discharged from the Academy. However, Guerrero was impressed by his skill and urged Luna to travel to Spain to further pursue his studies.

Travel abroad[link]

The Death of Cleopatra, 1881, Museo del Prado.

In 1877 Manuel and Juan Luna traveled to Europe, where Manuel studied music and Juan painting. Juan entered the Escuela de Bellas Artes de San Fernando, where he befriended the painter Don Alejo Vera. Luna was discontented with the style of teaching in school and decided that it would be much better to work with Vera. Vera brought him to Rome for some of his commissions, and Luna was exposed to the art of the Renaissance painters. It was in 1878 when his artistic talents was established with the opening of the first art exposition in Madrid which was called the Exposición Nacional de Bellas Artes (National Demonstration of Beautiful Arts). From then on, Luna became engrossed in painting and produced a collection of paintings that he exhibited in the 1881 Exposition.

His La Muerte de Cleopatra (The Death of Cleopatra) won him a silver medal and came in second place. Luna's growing reputation as an artist led to a pensionado (pension) scholarship at 600 pesos annually through the Ayuntamiento of Manila. The condition was that he was obliged to develop a painting which captured the essence of Philippine history which would then become the Ayuntamiento's property.

As an artist[link]

In 1883 Luna started the painting demanded of him by the Ayuntamiento. In May 1884, he shipped the large canvas of the Spoliarium to Madrid for the year's Exposición Nacional de Bellas Artes. He was the first recipient of the three gold medals awarded in the exhibition and Luna gained recognition among the connoisseurs and art critics present. On June 25, 1884, Filipino and Spanish nobles organized an event celebrating Luna's win in the exhibition. That evening, Rizal prepared a speech for his friend, addressing the two significant things of his art work, which included the glorification of genius and the grandeur of his artistic skills.

Luna developed a friendly relationship with the King of Spain and was later commissioned by the Spanish Senate to paint a large canvas which was called the La Batalla de Lepanto (The Battle of Lepanto). He moved to Paris in 1885 where he opened his own studio and befriended Hidalgo. A year after, he finished the piece El Pacto de Sangre (The Blood Compact) in accordance with the agreement he had with the Ayuntamiento of Manila. Depicted in this piece was the blood compact ceremony between the Datu Sikatuna, one of the lords in Bohol island, and the Spanish conquistador Miguel López de Legazpi. It is now displayed in the Malacañang Palace. He also sent two other paintings in addition to the one required; the second canvas sent to Manila was a portrait of López de Legazpi reconstructed by Luna from his recollection of a similar portrait he saw in the hall of the Cabildo, and the third was of Governor-general Ramón Blanco y Erenas.

In 1887, Luna once again traveled back to Spain to enter in that year's Exposition two of his pieces, the La Batalla de Lepanto and Rendición de Granada (Surrender of Granada), which both won in the exhibition. He celebrated his triumph with his friends in Madrid with Graciano López-Jaena delivered Luna a congratulatory speech. Luna's paintings are generally described as being vigorous and dramatic. With its elements of Romanticism, his style shows the influence of Delacroix, Rembrandt, and Daumier.

Marriage[link]

On December 8, 1886, Luna married Maria de la Paz Pardo de Tavera, a sister of his friend Felix and Trinidad Pardo de Tavera. The couple traveled to Venice and Rome and settled in Paris. They had one son, whom they named Andrés, and a daughter nicknamed Bibi who died in infancy. Luna was fond of painting his wife. However, the jealous Luna frequently accused Paz of having an affair with a certain Monsieur Dussaq. Finally in a fit of jealousy, he killed his wife and mother-in-law and wounded his brother-in-law, Felix, on September 23, 1892. He was arrested and murder charges were filed against him.

Luna was acquitted of charges on February 8, 1893, on grounds of temporary insanity; the "unwritten law" at the time forgave men for killing unfaithful wives.^[1] He was ordered to pay the Pardo de Taveras a sum of one thousand six hundred fifty one francs and eighty three cents, and an additional twenty five francs for postage, in addition to the interest of damages. Five days later, Luna went to Madrid with his brother, Antonio Luna, and his son, Andrés.

Final years[link]

In 1891 Luna moved back to the Philippines and traveled to Japan in 1896, returning during the Philippine Revolution of the Cry of Balintawak. Unfortunately, on September 16, 1896, he and his brother Antonio Luna were arrested by Spanish authorities for being involved with the Katipunan rebel army. Despite his imprisonment, Luna was still able to produce a work of art which he gave to a visiting priest. He was pardoned by the Spanish courts on May 27, 1897 and was released from prison and he traveled back to Spain. In 1898, he was appointed by the executive board of the Philippine revolutionary government as a member of the Paris delegation which was working for the diplomatic recognition of the República Filipina (Philippine Republic). In 1899, upon the signing of the Treaty of Paris (1898), Luna was named a member of the delegation to Washington, D.C. to press for the recognition of the Philippine government.

He traveled back to the Philippines in December 1899 upon hearing of the murder of his brother Antonio by the Kawit Battalion in Cabanatuan. On December 7, 1899, Luna suffered a heart attack and died there. His remains were buried in Hong Kong and in 1920 were exhumed and kept in Andrés Luna's house, to be later transferred to a niche at the Crypt of the San Agustin Church in the Philippines. Five years later, Juan would be reinstated as a world renowned artist and Peuple et Rois, his last major work, was acclaimed the best entry to the Saint Louis World's Fair in the United States. Unfortunately some of his paintings were destroyed by fire in World War II.

Paintings and Drawings by Juan Luna[link]

• 

  Bay of Biscay

• 

  Chula

• 

  Despues del Baile

• 

  El Violinista

• 

  En el Balcon

• 

  España y Filipinas

• 

  Ramon Blanco y Erenas

• 

  Idilio

• 

  Indio Bravo

• 

  José Rizal

• 

  La Bulaqueña

• 

  La Madrileña (En el Balcon)

• 

  La Marquesa de Monte Olivar

• 

  Manuel Luna

• 

  Mi Hijo Andres

• 

  Nena y Tinita

• 

  Odalisque

• 

  Picnic in Normandy

• 

  Puesta del Sol

• 

  Self portrait

• Juan Luna Spoliarium.jpg

  Spoliarium

• 

  Street Flower Vendor

• 

  Tampuhan

• 

  La Batalla de Lepanto

• 

  El Pacto de Sangre

• 

  La Muerte de Cleopatra

• 

  The Parisian Life

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Juan Luna

See also[link]

• Spoliarium
• El Pacto De Sangre
• España y Filipinas
• Antonio Luna

Publications[link]

• Manuel, Arsenio. Dictionary of Philippine Biography, Volume II. Manila: Regal Printing Company, 1970.
• Ocampo, Ambeth R. "Juan Luna's Works." Philippine Daily Inquirer, 24 October 2007.
• Sevilla, José N. Sa Langit ng Bayang Pilipinas. Mga Dakilang Pilpino o Ang Kaibigan ng mga Nag-aaral. Manila: Limbagan nina Sevilla at mga kapatid at Kn., 1922.

Notes[link]

External links[link]

• INQUIRER.net: Juan Luna's work
• López Memorial Museum: Juan Luna

v t e Juan Luna Works Spoliarium • El Pacto de Sangre • La Muerte de Cleopatra • La Batalla de Lepanto • La Bulaqueña • The Parisian Life • La Madrileña (En el Balcon) • Mi Novia • Tampuhan • Peuple et Rois • Ecce Homo • Las Damas Romanas • Ensueños de Amor • Daphne and Chloe • Hymen o Hymenee • España y Filipinas • Odalisque Series Chula series • Peuple et Rois (Sketches)

v t e Filipino painters Pacita Abad · Martino Abellana · Federico Aguilar Alcuaz · Fernando Amorsolo · Pablo Amorsolo · Isidro Ancheta · Marcel Antonio · Luis Eduardo Aute · Benedicto Cabrera · Fabian de la Rosa · Victorio C. Edades · Botong Francisco · Paco Gorospe · Félix Resurrección Hidalgo · José T. Joya · Ang Kiukok · Cesar Legaspi · Nestor Leynes · Juan Luna · Arturo R. Luz · Malang · Vicente Manansala · Jao Mapa · Maningning Miclat · Hernando R. Ocampo · Onib Olmedo · Alfonso A. Ossorio · Mario Parial · José Rizal · Danny Sillada · Romeo Villalva Tabuena · Fernando Zóbel de Ayala y Montojo Category:Filipino painters

Niña Pastori is a Spanish flamenco singer (cantaora). She was born María Rosa García García in San Fernando (Cádiz) on 15 January 1978. The youngest of five siblings and only daughter of a military man (José) and gypsy flamenco singer 'La Pastori', she started her artistic career at a young age. At the age of six she accompanied her mother in the flamenco tablaos of "Barrio de la Pastora", and a year later won a contest in San Fernando. Her initial name was "La niña de la Pastori", but she later changed it to "Niña Pastori".

Biography[link]

Among her first mentors was Camarón de la Isla, also from San Fernando (Cádiz), whose purist flamenco style she followed in her early years. Later she added a more commercial, pop tone to her image and style without losing her flamenco roots, and artists Paco Ortega and Alejandro Sanz helped her produce her first album, Entre dos puertos (Between Two Ports), when she was seventeen. The single Tú me camelas was a hit in Spain in summer 1996.

Her second album, Eres luz (You Are Light, 1998) confirmed her success, with songs again by Paco Ortega and Alejandro Sanz, Parrita, Manuel Malou and her brother Paco. In 2000 she published her third album, Cañaílla, produced by Alejandro Sanz and Josemi Carmona of the flamenco group Ketama; it is dedicated to her home town and more flamenco than the previous works. Her album María (2002) evolved to a more personal style, taking part in the lyrics and composition of some of her songs, a trend that she continued in No hay quinto malo, her fifth album (2004).

In Joyas prestadas (Loaned jewels, 2006), where Niña Pastori makes personal versions of songs originally by artists from very different styles and genres. The original artists include Joan Manuel Serrat, Alejandro Sanz, Mexican rockers Maná, Dominican artist Juan Luis Guerra, Antonio Machín, Manolo García of El Último de la Fila, Luz Casal, Armando Manzanero, Los Jeros or Marifé de Triana.

The last album released is Esperando Verte released in January 2009. She sang a version of Schubert's Ave Maria during Pope John Paul II's last visit to Madrid on May 2003. Later this version was included in a new edition of her album María released in 2006. She is married to Julio Jiménez Borja "Chaboli", co-producer, composer and percussionist in her albums. She is the great-granddaughter of flamenco singer Inés "la del Pelao".

Collaborations[link]

• Entre dos puertos: Antonio Reyes (bailador); Ricardo Miño, Moraíto Chico, Juan Manuel Cañizares, Rafael Riqueni and Ramón Trujillo (guitarista).

• Eres luz: Moraíto, Juan Carlos Romero, Machuka, Alejandro Sanz, José Antonio Rodríguez and Juan Manuel Cañizares (guitarists); Manuel Soler, El Bandolero and Chaboli (percussionista).

• Cañaílla: Guadiana (cantador), Antonio Carmona (cantador); José Miguel Carmona, Diego Carrasco, Diego del Morao, Moraíto Chico and Vicente Amigo (guitarista); Alejandro Sanz (compositante); El Bandolero and Chaboli (percussionista).

• María: Farruquito (bailaor); José Carlos Gómez, Moraíto Chico, Diego del Morao and José Antonio Rodríguez (guitarists); El Bandolero, Chaboli and Tino di Geraldo (percussionists).

• No hay quinto malo: Paquete, Diego del Morao, Juan Carmona and José Miguel Carmona (guitarists); Luis Dulzaides, Tino di Geraldo and Chaboli (percussionists); Carles Benavent (bass); Victor Merlo (double bass).

• Joyas prestadas: José Miguel Carmona and Diego Moreno (guitarists); Chaboli and Angie Bao (percussionist); Antonio Serrano (harp); Nacho Mañó and Antonio Ramos "Maca" (bass); José María Cortina and Santi Navalón (keyboards).

External links[link]

• MySpace profile
• esflamenco.es (in English)
• Interview with Niña Pastori

Mercedes Sosa
Mercedes Sosa (1973)
Background information
Birth name	Haydée Mercedes Sosa
Born	(1935-07-09)July 9, 1935
Origin	Argentina
Died	October 4, 2009(2009-10-04) (aged 74)
Genres	Folk, Nueva canción
Occupations	Singer, Activist
Years active	1950–2009

Haydée Mercedes Sosa (9 July 1935^[1] – 4 October 2009), known as La Negra (literally: The Black One), was an Argentine singer who was popular throughout South America and many countries outside the continent. With her roots in Argentine folk music, Sosa became one of the preeminent exponents of nueva canción. She gave voice to songs written by both Brazilians and Cubans. She was best known as the "voice of the voiceless ones".^[2]

Sosa performed in venues such as the Lincoln Center in New York City, the Théâtre Mogador in Paris and the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City, as well as sell-out shows in New York's Carnegie Hall and the Roman Coliseum during her final decade of life. Her career spanned four decades and she has been the recipient of several Grammy awards and nominations, including three nominations which will be decided posthumously. She served as an ambassador for UNICEF.

Life[link]

Sosa was born on 9 July 1935, in San Miguel de Tucumán, in the northwestern Argentine province of Tucumán, of mestizo, French, and Quechua Amerindian ancestry.^[3] In 1950, at age fifteen, she won a singing competition organized by a local radio station and was given a contract to perform for two months.^[4] She recorded her first album, La Voz de la Zafra, in 1959.^[4] A performance at the 1965 Cosquín National Folklore Festival -where she was introduced and brought to the scene while seating among the public by fellow folk singer Jorge Cafrune-,^[5] brought her to the attention of her native countrypeople.^[4]

Sosa and her first husband, Manuel Óscar Matus, with whom she had one son, were key players in the mid-60s nueva canción movement (which was called nuevo cancionero in Argentina).^[6] Her second record was Canciones con Fundamento, a collection of Argentine folk songs.

In 1967, Sosa toured the United States and Europe with great success. In later years, she performed and recorded extensively, broadening her repertoire to include material from throughout Latin America.

In the early 1970s, Sosa released two concept albums in collaboration with composer Ariel Ramírez and lyricist Félix Luna: Cantata Sudamericana and Mujeres Argentinas (Argentine Women). She also recorded a tribute to Chilean poet Violeta Parra in 1971, including what was to become one of Sosa's signature songs, Gracias a la Vida.^[3][7] She also improved the popularity of songs written by Milton Nascimento of Brazil and Pablo Milanés and Silvio Rodríguez both from Cuba.^[3]

After the military junta of Jorge Videla came to power in 1976, the atmosphere in Argentina grew increasingly oppressive. At a concert in La Plata in 1979, Sosa was searched and arrested on stage, along with the attending crowd.^[6] Their release came about through international intervention.^[4] Banned in her own country, she moved to Paris and then to Madrid.^[4][6] Her second husband died in 1978.

Sosa returned to Argentina in 1982,^[6] several months before the military regime collapsed as a result of the Malvinas War, and gave a series of concerts at the Opera theatre in Buenos Aires, where she invited many of her younger colleagues to share the stage. A double album of recordings from these performances became an instant best seller. In subsequent years, Sosa continued to tour both in Argentina and abroad, performing in such venues as the Lincoln Center in New York and the Théâtre Mogador in Paris. In a poor condition of health for much of the 1990s, she performed a comeback show in Argentina in 1998.^[4] In 1994, she played the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City.^[3] In 2002, she sold out both Carnegie Hall in New York and the Coliseum in Rome in the same year.^[3]

A supporter of Perón in her youth, she favored leftist causes throughout her life. She opposed President Carlos Menem, who was in office from 1989 to 1999, and supported the election of Néstor Kirchner, who became president in 2003.^[8] Sosa was a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for Latin America and the Caribbean.^[6][9]

In a career consisting of four decades, she worked with performers across several genres and generations, folk, opera, pop, rock, including Lucio Dalla, Nana Mouskouri, Maria Farantouri, Andrea Bocelli, Holly Near, Silvio Rodríguez, Pablo Milanés, Milton Nascimento, Caetano Veloso,^[3] Joan Manuel Serrat,^[3] Chico Buarque, Gal Costa, Gian Marco, Konstantin Wecker, Lourdes Pérez, Nilda Fernández, Pata Negra, David Broza, Franco Battiato, Luz Casal, Ismael Serrano, Charly Garcia, Joan Baez, Luciano Pavarotti, Shakira, Lila Downs, Julieta Venegas, Martha Argerich, Francis Cabrel and Sting.^[6]

Sosa participated in a 1999 production of Ariel Ramírez's Misa Criolla.^[10] Her song Balderrama is featured in the 2008 movie Che, starring Benicio del Toro as the Argentine Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara.^[11]

Awards[link]

She won the Latin Grammy Award for Best Folk Album in 2000 ("Misa Criolla"), 2003 ("Acústico") and 2006 ("Corazón Libre"), as well as many international awards.

Her album Cantora 1 won two awards at the Latin Grammy Awards of 2009. She won Best Folk Album and was nominated for Album of the Year. The album was also awarded Best Recording Package.

Death[link]

Mercedes Sosa lying in repose, with her family and President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner viewing.

Suffering from recurrent endocrine and respiratory problems in later years, the 74-year-old Sosa was hospitalized in Buenos Aires on September 18, 2009.^[12] She died from multiple organ failure on October 4, 2009, at 5:15 am.^[7] She is survived by one son, Fabian Matus, born during the first marriage.^[4][13] He said: "She lived her 74 years to the fullest. She had done practically everything she wanted, she didn't have any type of barrier or any type of fear that limited her".^[13] The hospital expressed its sympathies with her relations.^[14] Her website featured the following: "Her undisputed talent, her honesty and her profound convictions leave a great legacy to future generations".^[15]

Her body was placed on display at the National Congress building in Buenos Aires for the public to pay their respects, and President Fernández de Kirchner ordered three days of national mourning.^[13][16] Thousands had queued by the end of the day.^[15] She was cremated on October 5.^[15][17]

Sosa's obituary in The Daily Telegraph said she was "an unrivalled interpreter of works by her compatriot, the Argentinian Atahualpa Yupanqui, and Chile's Violeta Parra".^[4] Helen Popper of Reuters announced her death by saying she "fought South America's dictators with her voice and became a giant of contemporary Latin American music".^[17] Sosa received two Latin Grammy nominations for her album which is nominated for a total of three awards. She went on to win Best Folk Album about a month after her death.^[3][6]

Discography[link]

Mercedes Sosa in 2005, with Argentina's then-First Lady (now president), Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.

She recorded forty albums.^[3][6]

• La voz de la zafra (1962)
• Canciones con fundamento (1965)
• Yo no canto por cantar (1966)
• Hermano (1966)
• Para cantarle a mi gente (1967)
• Con sabor a Mercedes Sosa (1968)
• Mujeres argentinas (1969)
• Navidad con Mercedes Sosa (1970)
• El grito de la tierra (1970)
• Homenaje a Violeta Parra (1971)
• Hasta la victoria (1972)
• Cantata sudamericana (1972)
• Traigo un pueblo en mi voz (1973)
• Si se calla el cantor (1973) (with Gloria Martín, life in Venezuela)
• Niño de mañana (1975)
• A que florezca mi pueblo (1975)
• En dirección del viento (1976)
• O cio da terra (1977)
• Mercedes Sosa interpreta a Atahualpa Yupanqui (1977)
• Si se calla el cantor (1977) - Recopilacion
• Serenata para la tierra de uno (1979)
• A quién doy (1980)
• Gravado ao vivo no Brasil (1980)
• Mercedes Sosa en Argentina (1982)
• Mercedes Sosa (1983)
• Como un pájaro libre (1983)
• Recital (1983)
• ¿Será posible el sur? (1984)
• Vengo a ofrecer mi corazón (1985)
• Corazón americano (1985) (with Milton Nascimento and León Gieco)
• Mercedes Sosa ´86 (1986)
• Mercedes Sosa ´87 (1987)
• Amigos míos (1988)
• En vivo en Europa (1999)
• De mí (1991)
• 30 años (1993)
• Sino (1993)
• Gestos de amor (1994)
• Live in Argentina (1994)
• Live in Europe (1994)
• Sera Posible El Sur (1994)
• Vivir (1994)
• Oro (1995)
• Escondido en mi país (1996)
• Gracias a la Vida (1996)
• Alta fidelidad (1997) (with Charly García)
• Coleccion Mi Historia (1997)
• Al despertar (1998)
• Misa criolla (1999)
• Serie Millennium 21 (1999)
• La Negra (2000)
• Acústico (2002)
• Grandes Exitos, Vols. 1 & 2 (2002)
• 40 Obras Fundamentales (2003)
• Argentina quiere cantar (2003) (with Víctor Heredia and León Gieco)
• Voz Y Sentimiento (2003)
• Corazón libre (2005)
• Éxitos Eternos (2005)
• La Historia del Folklore (2007)
• Cantora 1 (2009)
• Cantora 2 (2009)

Filmography[link]

• Güemes, la tierra en armas (1971)
• Argentinísima (1972)
• Esta es mi Argentina (1974)
• Mercedes Sosa, como un pájaro libre (1983)
• Será posible el sur: Mercedes Sosa (1985)
• Historias de Argentina en vivo (2001)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Mercedes Sosa

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Mercedes Sosa

• Mercedes Sosa's website (in Spanish)
• Mercedes Sosa's News (in Spanish)
• Mercedes Sosa at the Internet Movie Database

Saint Juan Diego
Juan Diego by Miguel Cabrera
Born	c. (1474-07-12)July 12, 1474[1] Calpulli of Tlayacac, Cuauhtitlan, Mexico
Died	May 30, 1548(1548-05-30) (aged 73) Tenochtitlan, Mexico City, Mexico
Honored in	Roman Catholic Church
Beatified	April 9, 1990, Vatican City, Rome by Pope John Paul II
Canonized	July 31, 2002, Basilica of Guadalupe, Mexico City, Mexico by Pope John Paul II
Major shrine	Basilica of Guadalupe, Mexico City, Mexico
Feast	December 9
Attributes	tilma

Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin or Juan Diego (1474–May 30, 1548) was, according to Mexican Catholic tradition, an indigenous Mexican who reported a Marian apparition, Our Lady of Guadalupe, in 1531. The apparition has had a significant impact on the spread of the Catholic faith within Mexico. The Roman Catholic Church canonized him in 2002, as its first indigenous American saint.

The reality of Juan Diego's existence has been questioned by a number of experts on the early religious history of New Spain including Bernardino de Sahagun, Joaquin Garcia Icazbalceta, Stafford Poole, Louise Burkhart and David Brading, who argue that there is a complete lack of sources about Juan Diego's existence prior to the publication of the Nican Mopohua a century later, in 1649 (they do not accept the validity of the Codex Escalada as historical evidence).^[2] Notwithstanding these doubts, the findings of an interdisciplinary study, by nearly two dozen experts involving a prominent Mexican university and a noted American scholar of pre-Columbian Mesoamerican linguistics and anthropology, all indicated authenticity of the document and 16th century origin.^[3][4]

Sources[link]

This section cites its sources but does not provide page references. You can help to improve it by introducing citations that are more precise.

The two primary sources to the life of Juan Diego are from 1648 and 1649. The first account, Imagen de la Virgen Maria, Madre de Dios de Guadalupe, Milagrosamente aparecida en la Ciudad de México, was written in Spanish by the priest Miguel Sánchez. It relates how Juan Diego witnessed the apparitions, how he informed Bishop Zumárraga, the miracles of the tilmahtli and the roses, the apparition to Juan Bernardino (Juan Diego's uncle), and how the shrine to Guadalupe was instated. According to contemporary sources this was the first time the apparition story was told to a wide audience.^[5] Some historians have suggested that Sánchez built his account on an indigenous oral tradition local to the area, a variant of the earlier legend of the appearance of the Virgin of Los Remedios.^[6] The Virgin of Remedios was a popular saint to whom several miraculous curings were attributed, among them the curing of an indigenous herdsman near Tepeyac and of a construction worker in Tacuba. The stories of the Virgen de Guadalupe and Virgen de Los Remedios have several similarities, and have often been confused. Historians have suggested that the Nican Mopohua can be understood as a variation of the legend of the miracle of the Virgin de los Remedios.^[7]

The second source which is more famous than Sánchez' and goes into more detail about Juan Diego is the Huei tlamahuiçoltica (which include "Nican Mopohua") written in Classical Nahuatl by Mexican priest and lawyer Luis Laso de la Vega and published in 1649.

The historic veracity of both sources are considered questionable by many historians.^[8] The primary doubts arise in the dearth of sources about the apparition and consequently about Juan Diego in the 117 years between the time given for the apparition and the first publication of the story. Also the fact that the story was described as being previously unknown by those who read its first publication. Furthermore the fact that Bishop Zúmarraga who figures as a prominent character in the account has not left any mention of either Juan Diego or the apparition in his otherwise ample correspondence is a problem for the credibility of the accounts.^[9] The problems with the historicity of Juan Diego was recognized as early as 1883 by Joaquín García Icazbalceta historian and the biographer of Archbishop Juan de Zumárraga, in private letter to the Mexican Bishop Icazbalceta concluded that there was no historical basis for the character of Juan Diego.

In 1995 a deer skin codex pictorially demonstrating the apparition and the life of Juan Diego appeared in the possession of Xavier Escalada, a Jesuit writing an encyclopedia of the Guadalupan tradition. This unprovenanced document, previously unknown to historians and archivists, became referred to as the Codex Escalada. This was at a time when the process of canonization was at a halt and historians and theologians were beginning to voice doubts about the veracity of the legend. The Codex seemed to provide ineffable proof of the historicity of the accounts of Sánchez and Laso de la Vega. To further strengthen its force of proof it bore the signatures of the important historical figures Antonio Valeriano and Bernardino de Sahagún which seemed to date it unequivocally to the mid 16th century around the time of the apparition. The sheer timing of the Codex' appearance was seen by some historians as suspicious, and the source is not regarded by them as an historical document but rather a fabrication.^{[page needed][10]} The Codex, however, was studied by approximately twenty experts in various specialties, including the Physics Institute of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México and anthropologist, linguist, and scholar of pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures, Charles E. Dibble of the University of Utah, as well by experts in graphology from the Bank of Mexico; the findings all indicate authenticity of the document and 16th century origin.^[3][4]

Life[link]

According to the Nican Mopohua, Juan Diego was born in 1474 in the calpulli of Tlayacac in Cuautitlán, a small Indian village some 20 km (12mi) to the north of Tenochtitlan (Mexico City). Another source indicated that Juan Diego was born on July 12, 1474.^[11]

His original or birth name was Cuauhtlatoatzin^[12] (alternately rendered as Quauhtatoatzin, Guauhtlatoatzin, or Cuatliztactzin), which has been translated as "Talking Eagle" in the Nahuatl language.

Conversion to Catholicism[link]

A farmer, landowner and weaver of mats, he witnessed the Spanish conquest of Mexico by Hernán Cortés in 1521, when he was 47 years old. Following the invasion, in 1524, the first 12 Franciscan missionaries arrived in what is now Mexico City.

Cuauhtlatoatzin and his wife welcomed the Franciscans in 1524 or 1525 and were among the first to be baptized — he taking the Christian name of Juan Diego; she, Maria Lucia. Later, they moved to Tolpetlac to be closer to Tenochtitlan (Mexico City) and the Catholic mission that had been set up by the Franciscan friars.

According to his legend, after hearing a sermon on the virtue of chastity, they reportedly decided to live chaste lives^{[citation needed]} . This decision was later cited as a possible reason for which the Virgin Mary chose to appear to Juan Diego^{[citation needed]} . In 1529, a few years after her baptism, Maria Lucia became sick and died. According to Sánchez' account Juan Diego and his wife had lived in celibacy for their entire lives; this would be extraordinary since he lived the first 47 years of his life according to pre-Columbian indigenous customs that only prescribed celibacy for the highest priesthood. The Nican Mopohua adds the detail about his celibacy beginning after his first sermon. Juan Diego found the Virgin Mary when he was 57.^[9]

Apparition on Tepeyac Hill[link]

As a widower, Juan Diego walked every Saturday and Sunday to church, and on cold mornings, wore a woven cloth called a tilma, or ayate made with coarse fibers from the maguey cactus for cotton was only used by the upper class Aztec.

On Saturday morning, December 9, 1531, he reported the following: As he was walking to church, he heard the sound of birds singing on Tepeyac hill and someone calling his name. He ran up the hill, and there saw a Lady, about fourteen years of age, resembling an Aztec princess in appearance, and surrounded by light. The Lady spoke to him in Nahuatl, his native tongue. She called him “Xocoyte,” her little son. He responded by calling her “Xocoyote,” his youngest child. The Lady asked Juan Diego to tell the bishop of Mexico, a Franciscan named Juan de Zumárraga, that she wanted a “teocalli,” a shrine, to be built on the spot where she stood, in her honor, where:

"I will demonstrate, I will exhibit, I will give all my love, my compassion, my help and my protection to the people. I am your merciful mother, the merciful mother of all of you who live united in this land, and of all mankind, of all those who love me , of those who cry to me, of those who seek me, of those who have confidence in me. Here I will hear their weeping, their sorrow and will remedy and alleviate all their multiple sufferings, necessities and misfortunes."

Recognizing the Lady as the Virgin Mary, Juan Diego went to the bishop as instructed, but the Spanish bishop, Fray Juan de Zumárraga was doubtful and told Juan Diego he needed a sign. Juan Diego returned to Tepeyac hill and explained to the Lady that the bishop did not believe him. He implored the Lady to use another messenger, insisting he was not worthy. The Lady however insisted that it was of the utmost importance that it be Diego speaking to the bishop on her behalf. On Sunday, Juan Diego did as the Lady directed, but again the bishop asked for a sign. Later that day, the Lady promised Juan Diego she would give him a sign the following day.

According to the Nican Mopohua, he returned home that night to his uncle Juan Bernardino’s house, and discovered him seriously ill. The next morning, December 12, Juan Diego decided not to meet with the Lady, but to find a priest who could administer the last rites to his dying uncle. When he tried to skirt around Tepeyac hill, the Lady intercepted him, assured him his uncle would not die, and asked him to climb the hill and gather the flowers he found there. It was December, when normally nothing blooms in the cold. There, Diego's miracle of the roses occurred: he found roses from the region of Castille in Spain, former home of bishop Zumárraga. The Lady re-arranged the roses carefully inside the folded tilma that Juan Diego wore and told him not to open it before anyone but the bishop. When Juan Diego unfolded his tilma before the Bishop roses cascaded from his tilma, and an icon of Our Lady of Guadalupe was miraculously impressed on the cloth, bringing the bishop to his knees.

According to the Nican Mopohua Zumárraga acknowledged the miracle and within two weeks, ordered a shrine to be built where the Virgin Mary had appeared. The bishop then entrusted the image to Juan Diego, who chose to live, until his death at about the age of 73 — on May 30, 1548 — as a hermit near the spot where the Virgin Mary had appeared. From his hermitage he cared for the chapel and the first pilgrims who came to pray there, propagating the account of the apparitions in Mexico.

No records prior to 1648 exist showing that Bishop Zumárraga acknowledged the miracle or that he even knew of it.^[13]

Impact on Mexico and the Catholic Church[link]

This article's factual accuracy is disputed. Please help to ensure that disputed facts are reliably sourced. See the relevant discussion on the talk page. (September 2007)

According to the traditional account, the original image of Our lady of Guadalupe miraculously appeared on the cloak of Juan Diego, on the hill of Tepeyac near Mexico City on December 12, 1531.

News of the apparition on Tepayac Hill spread quickly through Mexico; and in the seven years that followed, 1532 through 1538, the Indian people accepted the Spaniards and 8 million people were converted to the Catholic faith.

According to Daniel Lynch, director of the Apostolate of the Missionary Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, “An amazing thing happened. Indians became reconciled to Spaniards. And we had a new race of people. Mixed blood. We called them "Mestizos". Our Lady of Guadalupe had appeared as a Mestiza. They call her the dark virgin, the little brown one.”

Our Lady of Guadalupe, as the Virgin Mary came to be known in this context, still underpins the faith of many Catholics in Mexico and the rest of Latin America, and she is recognized as patron saint of all the Americas.

Interestingly, the years 1532 to 1538 which saw a large number of people join the Roman Catholic Church in Mexico based on Juan Diego's vision, were right in the midst of the period of Protestant Reformation in Europe. Hence as a large number of people left the Catholic Church in Europe, a large number of new Catholics appeared in Mexico, maintaining the overall strength of the Catholic Church. To this day, Latin America remains a major pillar of the Catholic Church.

Investigations, canonization and symbolism[link]

Juan Diego was recognized by the Church soon after the apparition. He expressed a deep love for the Holy Eucharist, and by special permission of the Bishop he received Holy Communion three times a week, a highly unusual occurrence in those times.

In 1667, a Church investigation into the establishment of a feast day produced a document known as the Informaciones Jurídicas de 1666, purporting to gather information from informants whom had had some connection with Juan Diego. In 1723 a formal investigation into his life was ordered by Archbishop Lanziego y Equilaz.

Veneration[link]

On January 9, 1987, the Congregation for the Causes of Saints declared Juan Diego venerable. Pope John Paul II beatified him on May 6, 1990, during a Mass at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City, declaring December 9 Juan Diego's feast day, one day after Immaculate Conception and invoking him as “protector and advocate of the indigenous peoples.”

Controversy over the historical authenticity of Juan Diego was stirred in 1996 by Father Guillermo Schulenburg, a longtime abbot of the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, who called Juan Diego a mythical character.

The Vatican subsequently established a commission of 30 researchers from various countries to investigate the question. The commission's view was that Juan Diego had indeed existed, and the results of their research were presented to the Vatican Congregation for the Causes of Saints on October 28, 1998. Among research documents submitted at that time were 27 Guadalupe Indian documents.

Canonization[link]

Juan Diego was canonized by Pope John Paul II on July 31, 2002.^[14] Pope John Paul II praised Juan Diego for his simple faith nourished by catechesis and pictured him (who said to the Blessed Virgin Mary: "I am a nobody, I am a small rope, a tiny ladder, the tail end, a leaf") as a model of humility.

Symbolism[link]

By 1820, when the Mexican War of Independence from Spanish colonial rule ended, Our Lady of Guadalupe had come to symbolize the Mexican nation. The armies of both Miguel Hidalgo in 1810 and Emiliano Zapata in 1914 flew Guadalupan flags. The first president of Mexico adopted the name "Guadalupe Victoria" during the fight for independence from Spain. Today, the Virgin of Guadalupe remains a strong national and religious symbol in Mexico.

Many Mexicans also see the canonization of Juan Diego as a symbolic victory in the movement for greater recognition of their heritage reflected in the Catholic religion; Pope John Paul II held a Mass in Mexico that borrowed from Aztec traditions, including a reading from the Bible in Nahuatl. The Pope urged the Catholic Church in Mexico to be respectful of indigenous traditions and to incorporate them into religious ceremonies when appropriate.

Controversy over official depiction[link]

There was controversy over the official image of Juan Diego selected by the Archdiocese of Mexico City in 2002. Critics feel that it depicts Juan Diego as having European features rather than the features of a Mexican Indian. Church officials responded that the depiction reflected the current ethnic make-up of Mexico.^[15]

See also[link]

• Our Lady of Guadalupe
• Miracle of the roses

Notes[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Sancta.org: Saint Juan Diego
• Biography from the Holy See for Juan Diegos Canonization
• Juan Diego at the Rosary Workshop
• Latin America's Indigenous Saint Stirs Anger, Pride, LA Times, July 30, 2002

Diego Luna
Luna at the Deauville American Films Festival, 2010
Born	Diego Luna Alexander (1979-12-29) December 29, 1979 (age 32) Mexico City, Mexico
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1982–present
Spouse	Camila Sodi (m. 2008) «start: (2008)»"Marriage: Camila Sodi to Diego Luna" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Diego_Luna)

Diego Luna (born December 29, 1979) is a Mexican actor known for his childhood telenovela work, a starring role in the film Y tu mamá también, and supporting roles in American films. He is also known for his roles in Rudo y Cursi and Milk. Together with Romola Garai, he starred the film Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights. Luna also had minor roles in Frida and Before Night Falls. He also provides Spanish language narration for the National Geographic Channel documentary Great Migrations.

Personal life[link]

Luna was born Diego Luna Alexander in Mexico City; the son of Fiona Alexander, an English costume designer,^[1] and Alejandro Luna, a Mexican set designer^[2] who is one of the most acclaimed living theatre, cinema, and opera set designers in Mexico. His mother died in a car accident when he was two years old.^[3] She had worked in the film industry and had made sure that this was a life Luna would be immersed in. His father also reinforced the importance of theater and the arts in his life. In Luna's youth, he would bring him to the sets and mentor him in all different aspects of his art, furthering his desire to become an actor and uphold a family tradition.

Luna wed Mexican actress Camila Sodi on February 5, 2008 and their son Jerónimo was born in Los Angeles on August 9, 2008.^[4] They welcomed daughter Fiona, named after Luna's late mother, on July 1, 2010 in Mexico City.^[5]

Luna co-founded the organization and film festival Ambulante A.C.^[6] along with his friend Gael Garcia Bernal. The organization works to bring documentary films to places where they are rarely shown. Ambulante was awarded the Washington Office on Latin America's prestigious Human Rights Award in 2011^[7].

Career[link]

Luna at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival.

From an early age, Luna began acting in television, film, and theatre. His first television role was in the 1991 movie El Último Fin de Año. His next role was in the telenovela El Abuelo y Yo (1992) alongside his childhood best friend, Gael García Bernal, in 1995 he played the role of Laura León' troubled son Quique in the Mexican soap opera El premio mayor. Luna had his big break in 2001 when he was cast in the critically acclaimed Y tu mamá también , once again alongside García Bernal.

He is currently making a name for himself in the United States market, having starred alongside Bon Jovi in Vampires: Los Muertos (2002) and the Academy Award-winning Frida (2002). He was also in the western Open Range, Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights, The Terminal, and Criminal. In 2008, he appeared in the Harvey Milk biopic Milk playing Milk's emotionally unstable lover Jack Lira.

Luna and Gael García Bernal own Canana Productions. The company recently joined with Golden Phoenix Productions owned by producer Tom Golden of Hot Springs, Arkansas, to jointly produce a number of television documentaries about the unsolved murders of more than 300 women in the border city of Ciudad Juárez.^{[citation needed]} For the fourth time Luna reunites with fellow friend Gael García Bernal, this time in the American Spanish-language comedy film Casa de Mi Padre opposite Will Ferrell.^[8] In 2011, Luna played the male lead in Katy Perry's music video, The One That Got Away.^[9]

Filmography[link]

Director[link]

• Abel (2010)
• J.C. Chávez (2007)

Films[link]

• Elysium (2013)
• Casa de Mi Padre (2012)
• Contraband (2012)
• In the Playground (2010)
• Sólo quiero caminar (2009)
• Milk (2008)
• Rudo y Cursi (2008)
• Mister Lonely (2007)
• El Búfalo de la Noche (2007)
• JC Chávez (directorial debut, 2007)
• Toto (2006)
• Fade to Black (2006)
• Sólo Dios Sabe (2005)
• Amapola (2005)
• Criminal (2004)
• The Terminal (2004)
• Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (2004)
• Nicotina (2003)
• Open Range (2003)
• Carambola (2003)
• Soldados de Salamina (2003)
• Vampires: Los Muertos (2002)
• Frida (2002)
• Ciudades Oscuras (2002)
• Todos los Aviones del Mundo (2001)
• Atlético San Pancho (2001)
• Y tu mamá también (2001)
• Before Night Falls (2000)
• Todo el Poder (1999)
• Un Dulce Olor a Muerte (1999)
• El Cometa (1999)
• Un Hilito de Sangre (1995)
• Morena (1995)
• Ámbar (1994)
• El Último Fin de Año (1991)
• Antonieta (1982)

Soap operas[link]

• La Vida en el Espejo (1999)
• El Amor de mi Vida (1998)
• El Premio Mayor (1995)
• El Abuelo y Yo (1992)

Music Videos[link]

• The One That Got Away (Katy Perry song) (2011)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Diego Luna at the Internet Movie Database
• Diego Luna on Twitter
• Diego Luna on Myspace
• Diego Luna photo