Printing the Spirit: Gustave Baumann’s Santos

Gustave Baumann (1881-1971) was one of the most accomplished and beloved woodcut artists of the twentieth century, and a key figure in the arts scene in Santa Fe for more than fifty years. A prolific artist best known for his enchanting woodblock prints of scenes of southwestern life and culture, he first arrived in New Mexico in 1918, in Taos, at the encouragement of artist Walter Ufer. But after a visit to Santa Fe for an exhibition of prints that he had organized at the newly-opened New Mexico Museum of Fine Arts, he realized that was where he wanted to be. Doors immediately opened for him: the museum’s curator, Paul Walter, secured a small loan and studio space in the basement of the museum, and Baumann quickly became an integral part of the community.

In New Mexico Baumann also discovered a centuries-old tradition of woodcarvings (bultos) and paintings (retablos) featuring saints (santos) along with other religious icons and stories. He was one of the first artists to recognize these woodcarvings as distinct art forms deserving of respect and preservation. In 1927 he was inspired to begin documenting the works of the santeros (literally, wood carvers of saints) who created these unique pieces of art. He began partnering with the writer Mary Austin, author of the now-classic southwestern novel, Land of Little Rain, and a young poet, Peggy Pond Church, who would go on to write the The House at Otowi Bridge: The Story of Edith Warner and Los Alamos, to create texts to complement his woodcuts of saints. His hope was to publish a book on the subject, The Little Saints of New Mexico, and indeed, he completed many of the preliminary elements of the book, but it didn’t come to pass during his lifetime.

In Printing the Spirit, Thomas Leech, former director of the Press at the Palace of the Governors of the New Mexico History Museum, and Carmella Padilla, a cultural historian specializing in New Mexico culture and history, bring together for the first time a selection of Baumann’s renderings of thirty-four bultos and retablos and the proofs he made for the The Little Saints of New Mexico. Also included are color reproductions of some of the actual santos upon which he modeled his works; images of his original carved woodblocks; essays by Baumann and Austin; poetry by Church; and period photographs. The result is a charming and intriguing tale of Baumann’s lifelong efforts to publish the book as well as the complexities of art-making in a multicultural community in his time and ours. 

The story of Baumann’s foray into the santos tradition is a little-known and little-acknowledged aspect of the artist’s luminous career. Printing the Spirit is a testament to Baumann’s unwavering commitment to opening the world’s eyes to the quiet grace and enduring importance of the santo tradition as well as an important contribution to the study of Spanish Colonial art in New Mexico.

Born in Germany in 1881, Gustave Baumann emigrated to Chicago with his family at the age of ten. His career in art began then as well, with the untimely death of his father pushing him into the role of the family breadwinner. Young Gustave was drawn to art, and apprenticed at the Franklin Engraving House, among others. He briefly returned to Germany in 1904-1905 to study woodcarving and graphic arts with Hans Neumann and Maximilian Daso. He returned to the U.S. at the height of the Arts and Crafts Movement, whose emphasis on skill and authenticity greatly influenced his approach to his work. He took great pride in producing all elements of the woodcut print himself, from the original sketch, to carving each color block, and printing the final image. Although his career began as a commercial artist in Chicago, time spent in the art colonies of Indiana, Massachusetts, and New York lured him permanently to fine art. He moved to New Mexico in 1918, and spent the rest of his life in Santa Fe, crafting a vision of the rich cultural diversity, awe-inspiring landscapes, and distinctive architecture of his adopted home that was admired and respected by fellow artists and the public alike.

Thomas Leech is an independent curator, printer and book artist. He is former director of the Press of the Palace of the Governors of the New Mexico History Museum in Santa Fe. Limited editions and books that Leech has printed include Doctor Franklin & Spain, Jack Thorp’s Songs of the Cowboy, O’Keeffe Stories, and The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (illustrated by Barry Moser). Under Leech’s leadership, the Palace Press received the 2014 Carl Hertzog Award for Excellence in Book Design, the 2015 Edgar Lee Hewett Award from the New Mexico Association of Museums, and the 2013 City of Santa Fe Mayor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts. Between 2001 and 2021 he curated a number of exhibits, including Jack Kerouac and the Writer’s Life and The Saint John’s Bible. Most recently, he is a guest curator of Gustave Baumann: The Artist’s Environment, at the New Mexico Museum of Art on July 18, 2025-through February 1, 2026.

Carmella Padilla is an award-winning journalist, author, and editor who explores intersections in art, culture, and history in the Southwest and beyond. Her books include A Red Like No Other: How Cochineal Colored the World, The Work of Art: Folk Artists in the 21st Century, El Rancho de las Golondrinas: Living History in New Mexico’s La Ciénega Valley, Low ‘n Slow: Lowriding in New Mexico, and The Chile Chronicles: Tales of a New Mexico Harvest. A native Santa Fean, Padilla is a co-founder of the Santa Fe International Literary Festival and a recipient of the Santa Fe Mayor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts and the New Mexico Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts.