The National Gallery of Art Acquires ‘Puerto Rican Pieta II’ by Professor David Antonio Cruz
In August The National Gallery of Art announced the acquisition of notable historical and contemporary works including Puerto Rican Pieta II (2006), a painting by Director of Graduate Studies, Concentration Head of Painting, and Assistant Professor of Visual Arts David Antonio Cruz. This is the artist’s first piece to enter the National Gallery’s collection, which, along with the other additions, aims to expand the institution’s showcase of artistic excellence.
David Antonio Cruz is originally from Philadelphia and moved to New York to attend Pratt Institute, where he received his BFA in Painting. He completed his MFA at Yale University, attended Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, and completed the AIM Program at the Bronx Museum, New York.
Puerto Rican Pieta II is a part of Cruz’s Jibaro series, early figural works from 2004–06 exploring the artist’s queer and Puerto Rican identities. The painting is a self-portrait of the artist reclining on a couch, draping the lower half of his body across his mother’s lap. In title and composition, the piece references the Pietà—which in Italian translates to “the pity” or “the mercy”—a depiction of the Virgin Mary holding the body of Jesus after the crucifixion, but Cruz's interpretation offers the image a new context and form. Like other works in the series the painting makes use of bold, vibrant colors in a domestic scene. Cruz often features close friends and chosen family, their bodies often leaning on each other, evoking a sense of community. Presence and intimacy radiate through the expressions of Cruz’s figures; their gazes are downturned and the viewer is positioned slightly below them, asked to hold them in reverence.
Since the National Gallery’s dedication in 1941, the collection has grown from just over 150 pieces to more than 160,000. In the gallery's announcement director Kaywin Feldman said the new acquisitions “expand key areas of our collection, reflecting the vibrancy of artistic creation across centuries and geographies.” Chief curational and conservation officer E. Carmen Ramons added that the pieces “reflect the kaleidoscopic breadth of art of the Americas and beyond.”
This summer, Cruz’s work was featured across the city in the installation black/backroom at PES Futures and the solo exhibition iknowyou’vewonderedwherei’vebeen;adrift,astare,atilt,asigh,exhale at Wave Hill’s Glyndor Gallery. Other recent solo projects include stay, take your time, my love, at ICA San Francisco and hauntme at Halsey Institute. His recent residencies and fellowships include the Joan Mitchell Artist in Residency (2025); Skowhegan Alumni Residency, Maine (2021); LMCC Workspace Residency, New York (2015); Joan Mitchell Foundation Painters & Sculptors Award (2018), and Mass Cultural Council’s Artist Fellowships (2022). Cruz’s work has been included in notable exhibitions at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, Washington, D.C (2014/2021); El Museo del Barrio, New York (2006/2016); the Brooklyn Museum (2019); and many others.