Born in Monterrey, Mexico, Jesse Herrera earned his B.A. in 1975 in art design from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a M.A. Degree in photojournalism from the University of Texas at Austin in 1990. Herrera began his photography career in Chicago working as a corporate photographer for the People’s Gas Company. Relocating to Austin in 1978, he worked for several state agencies, including the Texas Department of Agriculture, the State Preservation Board, and the Texas House of Representatives. He retired in 2004.
A primary focus of Herrera's personal work is documentation of religious ceremonies in Mexico, Spain and Guatemala. His work has been exhibited throughout Texas and the Midwest in one-man shows and national juried shows, most notably: The Seventh Annual New American Talent Exhibit, The Magic Silver Show, and Arte Sagrado . In addition, his work has been featured in various publications, including Borderlands: Texas Poetry Review, Chicago Magazine, Texas Highways, The Texas Observer and Art and Ritual in Golden-Age Spain . Herrera taught photography at Laguna Gloria Art School from 1990 to 2009.
In addition to the Briscoe Center, a selection of Herrera's work is in the permanent collection of the following institutions: the Wittliff Photography Collection of Southwestern and Mexican Photography at Texas State University, the Nettie Lee Benson Latin American Collection, the Harry Ransom Humanities Center of The University of Texas at Austin, Mexic-Arte Museum, the Austin History Center, and The Mexican Fine Arts Center and Museum at Chicago.
From the guide to the Jesse Herrera Photograph Collection AR 90-219, 93-233, 2000-23; 2011-398., (Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin)
