HONDURAN ART-- MAIN PAINTERS

"To make their work, our artists not only use their hands and eyes, they let their hearts and souls conduct them in the creation of their fine art." The Constitution of the Republic of Honduras recognizes our culture in Articles 172, 173 and 174, as an expression of the country of Honduras. It says that, in Article 172, "All anthropological, archeological, historic, and artistic riches of Honduras form part of the National Cultural Heritage. The law will establish standards that will work as a basis for its conservation, restoration, maintenance and restitution in this case. It is every Honduran's duty to conserve their preservation, and not to allow it to be taken away."

The National Art Gallery in Tegucigalpa houses collections of different forms of art spanning 7,000 years of work by Honduran artists, from paleolithic times to today.

Paintings The historic evolution of the Honduran painting can be outlined in four categories: 1. The Pre-hispanic Era; 2. The Colonial Era; 3. The Post-independent Era; 4. The Liberal Post-Reform. The set of these eras, is in itself, an evolution in ascending meaning. A historic march that comes from primitive stages, and reaches up until today, when the Honduran society's standards are governing others work and organization. The art, though, by its characteristics of relative autonomy, is dissociated from this ascending course, and it evolves on its own, though impregnated by the influence that each era provides   In the 30's decade, Jose Antonio Velasquez excels, considered the first primitivist artist of Honduras. Like in all primitivist paintings, the tablos of Velasquez are characterized by the ingenuity and tranquility in the atmosphere which he conveys.

Important Artists Other Honduran painters that have been recognized for their works at a national and international level are: Carlos Garay, Roque Zelaya Acosta, Dante Lazzaroni, Ricardo Aguilar, Moises Becerra, Benigno Gomez, Gregorio Sabilloon, Ezequiel Padilla, Julio Visquerra, Hermes Armijo Maltez, Felipe Burchard, Alejo Lara, Jesus Valladares, Rony Castillo, Maury Flores, Alfredo Garay, Armando Lara, Marco Rietti, Edwin Perdomo, Enrique Escher, Celsa Flores, Raul Lainez, Allan Caicedo, Geovany Flores, Miguel Angel Ruiz, Clementina Suarez, Ricardo Aguilar, Ernesto Argueta, Alvaro Canales, Mario Castillo, Anibal Cruz, Dino Fanconi, Teresita Fortin, Carlos Garay, Gelasio Gimenez, Benigno Gomez, Virgilio Guardiola, Juan Ramon Lainez, Mario Castillo, Mario Mejia, Oscar Mendoza, Luis H. Padilla, Efrain Portillo, Cesar Rendon, and Manuel Rodriguez.

Pinto Rodezno

Watching the paintings of Pinto Rodezno is to penetrate in a world of magic corridors where surprises emerge in any moment; where the sound of bells and the reflections of the streets, like if they were mirrors, make us feel and smell the jasmines and bougainvillea. This description of Pinto Rodezno by Julio Visquerra let us know the personality of a young and modern artist who united his pictorial creativity in the vision of the urban significance. He has exposed in Quebec, Geneva, Miami, San Juan, New Orleans and Barcelona, among other international cities.

Asked about the motif of one of his paintings, Mr. Rodezno said that the "rain of fish" is a popular theme in Honduran paintings. It is based on a phenomenon that occurred in the Department of Yoro in north-central Honduras.

"People there awoke one morning after a thunderstorm and found the ground covered with fish," said Rodezno. "This phenomenon still occurs from time to time."

Roque Zelaya

The beauty of a painting makes people speechless. These words of Lucian Freud describes Zelaya as an artist who puts his heart in his artworks. The painting of Roque is a memorable discovery in the international plastic art. Roque Zelaya of "The Language of the Flowers" is a paintbrush gardener, universal and outstanding painter who creates perfect and fine artworks. The ability in the details, the perfectionism in the drawings and the elegance in the popular representations, constitutes the keys of the ingenious painting of Roque Zelaya.

Dario A. Rivera Trejo

Concerned by the process and technique of arts, Dario experienced in different ways, identifying the materials to make of them creative artistic works, In his incursions in the sculpture and paintings he has his particular knowledge managing different materials to make a job of real and imaginary spaces where he losses the stilling form to duplicate and delight in uncertain directions, converting it in images that levitate and celebrate their liberation. Dario has exposed in Italy, U.S.A., Nicaragua, Mexico, France.

Jesus Antonio Zelaya

"Who paints and sculpts what he sees is not an artist, only the one who paints and sculpt what he feels, may be considered like that. To my knowledge, this is the case of the sculpture of Jesus Antonio Zelaya." With this words Benigno Gomez, a graduated of the School of Belle Arts of Rome describes the magnificent artworks of this incredible artist. Concentration, faith, patience, and perseverance are always with him. In such way we have the joy to admire the positive results of a sculptor who gives life to logs.

Carlos Garay

Landscapes by Carlos Garay are the representation of his homeland: Honduras. He unifies a colored poetry with the shining American impressionism. It comes up from his palette to immortalize his art and his thematic in the same way Master Antonio Velasquez did it. We could call the trilogy of daydreams and reality: Honduras-Velasquez-Garay. His artworks can be admired in multiple galleries, public and private in Mexico Finland, U.S.A., Sweden, Russia, Israel and the Vatican among many others. His biography is very well explained in the British Encyclopedia 6-15 edition 1986.

Julio Visquerra

Without any kind of incentives to guide him into the artistic activities, Visquerra found his way selling books and restoring antiques in Spain and France. With this humble position he had the chance to visit museums and private galleries, meeting many painters. For him, fruits are the unequivocal symbol representing life, hope and movement. Starting when he was 12 years old, his paintings connect human and animal figures with vegetables and we can find tropical rhythm and taste. Dreams and reality, fantasy and objectivity, irony and harshness. Life is beautiful, death is sad. Mystery and reality meet each other.

MAFFELA (Maria Ofelia Garcia Casanova)

Since 1986 MAFFELA has ventures in the plastics arts exposing her artworks in San Salvador, Miami, Washington, D.C., New Orleans and many other international cities. Well educated in English, drawing and painting, Beauty stylist, organ player and specialist in tourism, MAFFELA has been honored with different national and international awards as a modern artist exposing her talented artworks.

Dylber Obed Padilla

Winner of the Paul Gaugin Prize, offered by the Embassy of France in Honduras, Dylber Obed Padilla combines black, red, blue and brick colors, playing with them to create stealthy figures, adding warm and yellow tones to make formal expressions. Dylber is not only an artist in paintings; he started his works as sculptor modeling forms of strong, formal and impressive impact with unusual and irreverent expressions.

Jose R. Ruiz

The live expressions in the artworks of this talented artist transports to the viewer to an unreal world of fantasies and daydreams. His open mind reveals with the paintbrush his creativity and beauty of an emergent new style. The combination of green, yellow, red and blue converge in a colorful scenery to delight the most sophisticated taste in the plastic arts. Considered one of the youngest Honduran artist, has exposed his artworks in several public and private galleries in different countries.

Yovany Adonay Navarro

Clay, wood, rocks, marble, iron or what ever Navarro touches with his privileged hands is converted in a sculpture. His artworks are exposed around the world in private collections and museums, reflecting the admiration for the magic involved in every sculptures and painting. Exposing in "La Memoria presente dalla Shoah alla Cultura di pace" in Italy or "Daily Scenes" in Saint Peter, USA, is a demonstration of the technique and quality of Navarro's fine artworks.