The University of Arizona’s Confluencenter for Creative Inquiry has awarded $2,500 to Sonora-based artist Guadalupe Serrano to bring La Misión de Cosme y Damián: Imágenes Históricas de Tucson a Través del Tiempo to life. The visual arts project will reinterpret historical images of Tucson through a contemporary chromatic and aesthetic perspective, connecting the city’s history with the broader cultural legacy of the Arizona–Sonora borderlands. 

The project will feature 12 large-scale acrylic paintings inspired by archival images of Tucson, including the ruins of the Mission of San Cosme y Damián, Mission San Xavier del Bac, Levin’s Park and downtown Tucson during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Serrano will use color and contemporary artistic techniques to invite new ways of seeing and understanding the people, places and histories that have shaped the region. 

“This project represents a long-standing collaboration with Guadalupe Serrano that highlights the shared cultural and visual heritage of our transborder region while elevating his work and supporting his continued growth as an artist,” said Dr. Javier Duran, director of the Confluencenter for Creative Inquiry. “His work encourages us to look at the Arizona–Sonora borderlands not as separate places, but as a deeply interconnected region shaped by movement, memory and cultural exchange.” 

Serrano's project is supported through Fronteridades: Nurturing Collaborative Intersections in the U.S.–Mexico Border, a Confluencenter's initiative that brings together disciplines, sectors and communities to deepen understanding of the borderlands while expanding the perspectives and narratives that shape the region. 

Confluencenter's partnership with Serrano dates back to 2019, when Serrano joined Fronteridades and began contributing to cross-border artistic initiatives that cultivate emerging artists, strengthen relationships between cultural institutions, and encourage dialogue through the arts. La Misión de Cosme y Damián: Imágenes Históricas de Tucson a Través del Tiempo continues that work by revisiting Tucson’s visual history through the perspective of an artist whose career and creative practice are deeply rooted in the borderlands. 

“For as long as I can remember, I have always been interested in the history of where I live, the surrounding regions, the communities I visit, and of course world history in general,” Serrano said. “Given the history of the Confluencenter and Taller Yonke-which is essentially me-I consider it a relationship built on a great deal of trust...I am deeply grateful. It is a relationship grounded in trust, gratitude, and hard work.”  

Serrano is an accomplished visual artist from Los Mochis, Sinaloa, whose work has been exhibited throughout Mexico, the United States and Europe. His artwork is held in the collections of the Instituto Sonorense de Cultura, the University of Sonora and the University of Arizona, as well as private collections across Mexico and the United States. He currently serves as the Director of the Museo de Arte de Nogales Sonora.

The Fronteridades: Nurturing Collaborative Intersections in the U.S.–Mexico Border program is supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation as part of the Confluencenter’s continued commitment to interdisciplinary collaboration, public engagement and borderlands-centered storytelling.