A book on the legacy of America’s first Hispanic Saint, Junípero Serra. Celebrating the significant places Serra delivered his message to in each of the three major phases of his life—Mallorca, Mexico, and California. 101 images from original large format film negatives made by Craig Alan Huber, represented in the aesthetic of a platinum/palladium print. The images tell a visual story and communicate a sense of the Spirit present at each of the 37 locations represented. Accompanying text describes a brief history of Serra’s major life experiences from a young man in Mallorca to his final days in Alta California, written by noted Serra biographer Robert M. Senkewicz.
Handsome cloth bound hardback with dust cover, offset-printed in duotone on heavy fine-art paper.
Photographs by Craig Alan Huber. Introduction by Dr. Robert M. Senkewicz.
The Spirit Within Saint Junipero approaches Saint Junípero from a unique perspective, the sense of place, by presenting close and detailed views of the places that formed Junípero Serra, the places where he worked as a professor, a priest, and a missionary, and the places whose foundation was animated by his vision. By reflecting upon these places, the reader will be in able to approach this man in a fresh way.
Craig Alan Huber first began photographing the California Missions in 2008, and as he learned more of the Franciscans and contributions of Fray Serra in particular, he decided to make sojourns to both Mallorca and Mexico as well, to photograph the important places Serra played a pivotal role in. During his dedicated pilgrimages to these spiritual sites, he sought and often felt a life force flowing through them. This unseen energy has a Spirit. It is this Spirit Within he reveals through his work.
The images presented in this book are from Mr. Huber’s pilgrimages to thirty-seven sites where Serra had an impact. Twenty-three sites are in Alta California, where Junípero directly founded the first nine Missions and set the stage for the remainder. Seven locations are in Mexico, where he established five Missions in the remote Sierra Gorda mountains, and played significant roles in two Franciscan colegios San Fernando in Mexico City, and Santa Cruz in Queretaro. Finally, there are seven locations on the island of Mallorca where Josep Miguel Serra was born and eventually became a Franciscan just shy of his eighteenth birthday.
For the entire book, photographer Craig Alan Huber was faithful to what some term today as ‘old school’ photography, working with a large format film view camera, the same style used by Ansel Adams, Edward Weston, and other iconic photographers.
Californiafrontier.net readers receive a 20% discount — just add promo code “CAFrontier” at checkout.