The art of the santero has been central to the Hispanic culture in New Mexico for nearly 400 years, providing symbols of identity and faith. Spanish colonists brought with them their art and religion, which gave rise to the devotional art of the santero.

Retablos were painted on pine panels coated with homemade gesso made from animal hide glue and ground gypsum. Natural materials produced the pigments: iron oxides for yellows and oranges, indigo for blue, cochineal for reds and magentas, black walnut and micaceous clay for browns. Pine sap varnish sealed the finished retablo.

Arlene creates contemporary retablos in traditional form to express pride in her heritage. Her works make innovative use of natural pigments, while her soft, graceful lines and delicately applied gold leaf render familiar imagery in an immediately recognizable personal style.

Arlene traces her roots to northern New Mexico and southern Colorado—the heart of early santo making. Her profession is rooted in part in her family heritage and early childhood experience. The traditional techniques and process of painting santos requires that she stay true to her cultural history.

Since joining Spanish Market in 1992, Arlene’s work has gained national and international recognition. In addition to countless private collections, her santos have been acquired by the Museum of Spanish Colonial Art, the Museum of International Folk Art, the Taylor Museum, the Young Museum, Regis University and even the Vatican, which houses a reliquary crafted in collaboration with jeweler, Lawrence Baca.

Arlene received the Spanish Colonial Arts Society’s Master’s Award for Lifetime Achievement (2012), the Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts (2010), and the Archbishop of Santa Fe’s Award (2001). She was also featured in an episode of PBS ¡Colores! in 2017. Among her prestigious large-scale commissions are an altar screen in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel within Santa Fe’s St. Francis Cathedral Basilica. More recently, Arlene has completed altar screens at St. Joseph Community Health Initiatives in Albuquerque, and in the private chapel of the Bishop of Gallup, as well as commissions for the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Santa Maria de la Paz, St. Anne Parish in Santa Fe, St. Anthony Parish in Questa, Prince of Peace in Albuquerque and the Santuario de Chimayo.

“I consider my work a calling, and a great responsibility,” Cisneros Sena says. “When I found santo making, it wasn’t discovering what I want to be, it was like finding out who I’ve been all along. I have to paint . . . it’s where my joy comes from . . . it’s how I know God blessed me.”