The Portrait of Our Lady of Guadalupe

By Calista Anglin

While in the dome, I saw the painting of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The painting was the work of Amy Veter, who also painted the two other images next to it of Miguel Pro and Jose Sanchez del Rio. The art pieces at the entrance of the academic building are also her work. 

The portrait of Our Lady of Guadalupe is by one of the conference rooms. The painting is about three feet tall. In the painting, Mary is standing, praying with lights in the background. She is wearing a blue mantel embellished with symbols.  She wears a red gown and is holding a rosary. The color palette was brighter than I saw online. 

Our Lady of Guadalupe is the Spanish title of the Virgin Mary, mother of God. She first appeared when she manifested in front of Juan Diego in 1531. He was a Native Mexican who converted to Christianity before seeing the vision. Mary requested him to build a church for her on the spot where she appeared, which is Tepeyac Hill, Mexico. Juan Diego went to the Bishop to ask the church to be built, but without solid evidence, the Bishop didn’t believe him. The Virgin Mary appeared and sent Juan Diego again, but the Bishop didn’t believe him like last time. When Juan Diego told her about the situation, she said that she will bring a miracle. However, Juan Diego’s uncle got ill, and Juan Diego went to a different path, not to meet the Virgin Mary again; Juan Diego couldn’t outsmart her. She questioned where he was going, and he told her about his uncle being ill. Mary told him not to worry as his uncle had already recovered. She sent him to Tepeyac Hill to collect the roses there, which was impossible because the hill was bare, the roses weren’t native to Mexico, and it was during December. Juan Diego collected the flowers and carried them in his tilma, and when he got back to the Bishop, he opened his tilma to reveal the roses and the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. 

The Virgin Mary is important to our school because she is the patron saint of countless cities, towns, and countries; in our school, she is a unifying figure. She is also the mother of Jesus, an essential figure in our everyday lives. I chose this art piece because it reminded me of how Juan Diego collected out-of-season flowers from the Virgin Mary to prove to the Bishop that he encountered her.