Upbringing and Personal Life
José Hermenegildo de la Luz Bustos Hernández was born in the town of Purísima del Rincón in Guanajuato, Mexico in 1832. He remained in his hometown most of his life. There are rumors that he trained with a painter called Herrera, however, there is not enough information to verify this fact. In any case, he identified himself as an aficionado (amateur) artist. Apart from this, he often highlighted the indigenous part of his heritage. Bustos grew up in a deeply religious family, which influenced him throughout his career. He married when he was 22 years old to Joaquina Rios, but the couple never had kids. Although he enjoyed recognition for his paintings, at the end of the 1870s he had other trades. He worked as a sacristan, carpenter, and mason, among others.
Hermenegildo Bustos as a Portraitist
Bustos’ most acclaimed genre was the portrait. Even though he had no formal education, his depictions are outstanding. Most probably, that lack of academic training allowed him to capture a more honest and less idealized image of the sitters. Here are some examples of his work.