Documents of Latin American and Latino Art

In his introduction, Juan E. Ríos—the author of this overview of Peruvian painting from the first half of the twentieth century—describes Peruvian art as “the creation of a visual equivalent of reality, rather than a mere copy of it” denying [...]

According to the Cuban journalist, there is “a rich tradition of indigenous art” behind the paintings by Fernando de Szyszlo that were exhibited in Havana: a form of popular art whose roots can be traced back to pre-Hispanic culture in the Andean [...]

Juan Acha discusses the exhibition of Fernando de Szyszlo’s series of paintings inspired by the indigenous poem “Apu Inca Atawallpaman,” an event that was organized by the Instituto de Arte Contemporáneo (IAC) in Lima. Acha finds the [...]

This is a review of the state of art in the capital city of Peru, written by the academic painter Enrique Domingo Barreda on the occasion of the I Salón organized by the Municipality of Lima. In his opinion, this competition exposed “the appalling [...]

This [document is a commentary by] Mercedes Gallagher de Parks on artistic activities in Lima during the summer of 1943, including plays by Louis Jouvet, performances of Coronel de Bassil’s Russian ballet, and concerts by the Sociedad Filarmónica [...]

In this article, the editor of the newspaper Noticias de Arequipa interviews José Sabogal on the occasion of the artist’s visit to Arequipa, and they talk about contemporary Peruvian painting and traditional art. On the former topic, Sabogal [...]

Juan Acha argues that national identities are based on the sense of belonging to a tradition, one which transcends and regulates the adoption of foreign models. Therefore, “nationality” rests on a balance between the continuity of what is [...]

The author of this document, Edgar Varèse, criticizes the exploitation of folklore by “highbrow music.” He agrees that the indigenous spirit of ancient cultures can certainly be a source of inspiration for artists, but considers its manipulation [...]

With this text, Mateo Manaure announced his decision to leave the city and build a studio near his hometown of Uracoa in the state of Monagas. He says that he wants to spend more time painting and to make work with a more indigenous spirit pursuant [...]

This text is writer Sebastián Salazar Bondy’s response to the criticism of artistic nationalism voiced by Luis Miró Quesada Garland in El Comercio newspaper (Lima, September 25, 1955) [see in the ICAA digital archive “En blanca y negra” ( [...]

In this interview, Alejandro Romualdo Valle (“Xanno”) reacts to the ideological turn that the debate as to whether or not there are painters in Peru has taken. He states that the real problem facing Peruvian art “is the lack of critics.” [...]

Painter Aquiles Ralli rejects the comments made by Fernando de Szyszlo that became a national scandal: “there are no painters in Peru.” He juxtaposes the work of the “good artists,” those who diligently “work in silence and never advertise [...]

The author, Federico Costa y Laurent, considers the discussion about nonfigurative art to be anecdotal when he states that “painting, as such, simply is.” He claims that the core issue in the debate comes down to “sincerely living the essential [...]

The reviewer states that indigenist art has found “a new devotee” in Julia Codesido. Responding to her show in Lima in 1929, author Carlos Solari explains the painter has not taken a slavish stance, but rather has evolved slowly “in progressive [...]

In this text, Clodoaldo López Merino, under the pseudonym of “EGO,” asserts that even before this show of painting, Julia Codesido had consolidated her prestige as an artist. She had studied at European academies and at the Escuela Nacional de [...]

In this text, critic Raúl Pereira asserts that the works by María Izquierdo on exhibit in Lima display “distinct personality, unquestionable artistic quality, and visual daring” as they delve into the motifs of Mexican folk art. The treatment [...]

In this text, art critic Carlos Raygada asserts that, though Mario Urteaga has never before shown his painting in the capital, his work is not that of a beginner. Raygada describes Urteaga as a self-taught artist who, because he began painting in the [...]

This is the second of the two textbooks published by Elena Izcue, which were designed to teach art based on pre-Hispanic motifs at Peruvian schools. It includes two introductory texts. The first, addressed to teachers, explains how the pedagogical [...]

Ventura García Calderón asserts in this prologue that, in Latin America, the Spanish and Indian races did not mix and that the former ignored the latter even though it was, in his view, “one of the most perfect civilizations in the world.” He [...]

In his interview with Carlos Raygada, Héctor Velarde explains that his work “has consisted of coordinating and realizing the original concept” for the Basílica de Santa Rosa de Lima, while abstaining as much as possible from any alteration of [...]

This publication reproduces the prologue that Peruvian writer and diplomat Ventura García Calderón wrote to the book El arte peruano en la escuela by Peruvian artist Elena Izcue, as well as an essay by Peruvian educator Elvira García y García [...]

In this essay, the author analyses the works created by the Peruvian painter Jorge Vinatea Reinoso in the years following his exhibition at the ENBA (Escuela Nacional de Bellas Artes) in 1926, noting that, after the conclusion of the exhibition, [...]

The synopsis and the annotations in English are coming soon. However, our bilingual readers can click on “Español” to access this information in Spanish [...]

This article by Alberto J. Martínez discusses the use of stylized pre-Hispanic motifs to decorate one of the galleries of the Museo Nacional de Lima. In his view, “every effort to bolster a genuinely Peruvian form of artistic expression represents [...]

This text by Rafael Larco Herrera discusses the careers of Peruvian artists Elena and Victoria Izcue. The author mentions specifically Elena’s workbook El arte peruano en la escuela, published in 1926, which earned a great deal of acclaim in Peru [...]

In this interview with the sisters Elena and Victoria Izcue, the editor states that they are “notably national artists who have known how to nobly disseminate the motives of Peruvian art abroad.” He highlights their effort in making themselves [...]

Peruvian writer Sebastián Salazar Bondy sent this open letter to his fellow members of the Agrupación Espacio—a group of modern architects, artists, and writers based in Lima—from Buenos Aires. Salazar Bondy asserts that both art and thought [...]

This letter by Mariano Ibérico was written at the request of painter Antonino Espinosa Saldaña. More specifically, Ibérico was asked to share his opinion on the polemic surrounding the course on Incan art given at the Escuela Nacional de Bellas [...]

The author, Augusto Aguirre Morales, (who was selected by the ENBA to teach the controversial course) defends the existence of “Incan art,” using the examples conserved in museums and the testimonials of historians. He asserts that it was the [...]

Painter Antonino Espinosa opens this letter questioning the pertinence of the “Arte incaico” [Incan Art] course at the ENBA—to be offered by writer Augusto Aguirre, author of the novel El pueblo del sol [The People of the Sun]—arguing that [...]

This essay is on the newspaper add announcing the commencement of the Inca Art courses and studies at the ENBA (Escuela Nacional de Bellas Artes) in Lima by the Peruvian writer Augusto Aguirre Morales. The studies, a program that was fully [...]

Article written by Ernesto More, signed with the pseudonym Jerome, in which he criticizes the direction adopted by the Escuela Nacional de Bellas Artes (ENBA), based in Lima, Peru. The author affirms that ENBA was created by an oligarchic government [...]

These statements, that were collected and published in Cascabel, a weekly newspaper in Lima, were made by the artists Francisco González Gamarra, Domingo Pantigoso and Carlos More, as well as, by the sculptors Ismael Pozo, Luis Agurto and Romano [...]

After visiting the ENBA sculpture studios in Lima, the author comments on works by Coello and Pozo, and mentions the sculptress Carmen Saco. He then interviews Manuel Piqueras Cotolí, the architect from Madrid, in whose studio he examines two works [...]

In this article, Mercedes Gallagher de Parks reviews two exhibitions in Lima: one consisting of works by the Indigenist painter Camilo Blas (at the Instituto Bach); the other a collection of works by the English painter Fred Stratton (at the Sociedad [...]

The first part of the interview covers the start of his career and his training in Europe. After living in Buenos Aires (where he returned to his art studies), he returned to Peru in 1919. Sabogal states that “the Cuzco area cast a powerful spell [...]

The synopsis and the annotations in English are coming soon. However, our bilingual readers can click on “Español” to access this information in Spanish [...]

In his article, Guillermo Rouillón deplores the dismissal of José Sabogal from his position as director of the ENBA (Escuela Nacional de Bellas Artes). According to Rouillón, Sabogal is undoubtedly “the promoter and guide of Peru’s entry into [...]

This is an open letter—signed by the directors of the Sociedad de Bellas Artes del Perú—to the Minister of Public Education Enrique Laroza, that was published in the Lima newspaper La Prensa. The signatories express their agreement with the [...]

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 [...]

The synopsis and the annotations in English are coming soon. However, our bilingual readers can click on “Español” to access this information in Spanish [...]

The Peruvian intellectual Jorge Falcón interviews José Sabogal about his visit to several cities in the United States in 1942 at the invitation of the State Department. Sabogal admits that until then, he did not have a complete view of the [...]

According to César Francisco Macera, José Sabogal’s first exhibition in Perú (Lima, 1919) had a profound impact on the country; viewers were astonished and appalled at “the new landscape” they were looking at. Sabogal responded to critiques [...]

This is the responses given by José Sabogal, the founder of the Peruvian indigenous painting movement, to a questionnaire on the cultural situation in Peru. He proclaims his faith in the idea of a purely Peruvian kind of art, since it embodies “ [...]

The author clarifies that he has not yet been to the capital of Peru, but this has not prevented him from visiting José Sabogal’s Exhibition of Woodcut Prints in Lima time and time again. There is nothing absurd about it, says José Eulogio [...]

In this article the writer and journalist José Eulogio Garrido discusses the indigenist painting of José Sabogal. Garrido describes the painter as “a man with a voice and vision of his own who expresses that voice and vision in visible ways that [...]

The author believes “there is almost no hesitation” in recognizing the genius of José Sabogal on the eve of his exhibition in 1921. Speaking in glowing terms, M. E. Mendizábal explains that Sabogal’s paintings shed light on those living in [...]

This review, by the Peruvian essayist and art critic Mercedes Gallagher de Parks, is about the exhibition of work by José Sabogal at the Lima Country Club in 1940. The reviewer reproaches the artist, saying that “though he can paint magnificently [...]

The synopsis and the annotations in English are coming soon. However, our bilingual readers can click on “Español” to access this information in Spanish [...]

In his article about the exhibition of works by José Sabogal held at the Sociedad Filarmónica in Lima in 1937, Estuardo Núñez suggests that Sabogal’s paintings were not just the product of a particular school or trend but were required [...]