Pedimos Disculpas “We Apologize”
Santos Rodriguez Memorial Proposal
Pike Park Dallas | 2019
City of Dallas Office of Cultural Affairs
Public Art
Concept
The Santos Rodriguez Memorial at Pike Park abstracts reliquary forms found in Mexican and Catholic culture to create a work that both honors the life of Santos Rodriguez while giving testimony to the tragic events that lead to his death. Elements of the sculpture juxtapose the law and police violence with social justice, love, and loss to create a platform for reflection and healing.
Form
The central element of the reliquary sculpture is an upright female hand clutching a broken heart. In the center of the heart is a painted image taken from an iconic photograph of Santos Rodriguez. Below, in the center of the arm is a plaque that tells the story of his tragic death. The rear of the structure has another iconic painting of Santos as a young man. Projected onto the front and rear of the sculpture is a black and white graphic image of a 357 magnum, the weapon used by officer Darrel L. Cain to take the life of young Santos.
Surrounding the sculpture is a steel framework that eludes to Mexican and Catholic reliquaries. Within the framework the number 12 repeats through several of the elements as a representation of Santos’ age at the time of his death. The framework is anchored with text by the two central themes of the work. ” Pedimos Discupas” (We Apologize) is emblazoned on the front of the framework. This phase is the representation of the principle desire of the family that took 40 years to be fulfilled by political representatives from the Dallas Community. “Santos Vive” (Santos Lives) anchors the rear of the sculpture.