Documents of Latin American and Latino Art

In this essay, Peruvian art critic and diplomat Raúl María Pereira provides an overview of Peruvian painting from the first half of the twentieth century. While the author praises the first generation of academic painters, he believes that their [...]

Juan Ríos discusses the I Salón Municipal de Lima, which in his opinion, was a failure because most Peruvian artists decided to boycott the event due to widespread mistrust of the jury, which was made up of “distinguished civil servants or [...]

In response to de Szyszlo’s controversial statement “there are no painters in Peru,” sculptor Cristina Gálvez mentions four whom she considers excellent: Juan Manuel Ugarte Eléspuru, Ricardo Grau, Sérvulo Gutiérrez, and Julia Codesido. [...]

In this interview, Ricardo Grau reviews the major trends in the European visual arts from Manet to “the art known as Abstract,” identifying the School of Paris as the center of contemporary art. However, he also points out the importance of both [...]

In this article, critic Raúl María Pereira questions the “geographic location” and “theme” embraced by supposedly “neo-Peruvian” painting based on representation of the landscape and sierra motifs. The Peruvian coast has had little luck [...]

Well-known avant-garde author Ricardo Peña recounts the cosmopolitan education of Ricardo Grau, whom he describes as a “concertmaster of international figures.” In his paintings, he notes a tonal atmosphere that is austere and excessive. He [...]

After remarking on painter Ricardo Grau’s career in Europe, Carlos Raygada praises the maturity of Ricardo Grau’s work evident “in the sobriety of form and color essential to the work on exhibit.” The palette in Grau’s production, Raygada [...]

In this text, Carlos More argues that there are two distinct modern art movements in Europe, one—started by Paul Gauguin—that is basically decorative in nature, and the other that goes so far as to see art as “a state of consciousness.” The [...]

In this text, Luis Fernández Prada asserts that Ricardo Grau’s show of painting is “worthy of note” in a prudish Peruvian art scene characterized by unremarkable shows. In his view, the show “constitutes a resounding reaction against [...]

In this article, Froylán Miranda Nieto argues that Ricardo Grau’s painting “contributes to Peru by wholeheartedly supporting avant-garde art.” He asserts that, because “neither Indianist nor Europeanizing,” the artist has a special place [...]

This newspaper article about the closing of the first premises occupied by the IAC (Instituto de Arte Contemporáneo) in Lima was written by Francisco Moncloa at the request of the director of the magazine Oiga. Moncloa lists a series of “anecdotes [...]

The signatories to this open letter addressed to the then-president of Peru, Manuel Prado, request that José Sabogal be reinstated as director of the ENBA (Escuela Nacional de Bellas Artes). They point out that ever since he was appointed (in 1932 [...]

Several European intellectuals responded to the final question in the survey about “classical” painting and “modern” painting that was published in the Lima newspaper El Comercio. Paul Linder states that, in the course of history, there are [...]