Paintings

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Pedro Rafael González Chavajay, Rafael's grandson, took up painting and became San Pedro la Laguna's second painter. Over time his painting developed a distinctive style and he was instrumental in defining the Tz'utuhil style of painting. Along with his cousin Mariano Gonzalez, Pedro Rafael is considered San Pedro's finest artist. In Guatemala he has the reputation as the best among the many autodidactic Mayan painters. Pedro Rafael has worked exclusively with Arte Maya Tz'utuhil since 1992. His paintings were shown with the blockbuster exhibition "Courtly Art of the Ancient Maya," and are in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian.

Paula Nicho Cumez is unquestionably the most important woman artist among the self taught Maya painters of Guatemala. She is a Kaqchikel Maya Indian from San Juan Comalapa, the other area with a concentration of Maya artists painting in a style that comes out of their own Maya culture.

Mario Gonzalez Chavajay has been painting for nearly twenty years. He is one of two younger brothers of Pedro Rafael Gonzalez Chavajay who are painters. Mario perfected his technique painting for the local galleries catering to tourists. Four years ago he decided he wanted to paint original themes and now works exclusively for Arte Maya Tz'utuhil. His paintings are being shown with the blockbuster exhibition "Courtly Art of the Ancient Maya," and are in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian.

Diego Isaias Hernandez started out working in colored pencils on paper. He graduated to sculpture but finally ended up becoming an oil painter. Wisely he decided to learn on his own with the result that he has developed an original style which still is uniquely Mayan. Among all of the Mayan painters he comes up with some of the most interesting titles for his paintings. He won first prize in Guatemala's most prestigious art competition for a painting entitled "Mitch" about the hurricane which passed through Central America cause much destruction and loss of life.

Julian Coche Mendoza, one of five brothers who are artists, is the only artist represented here who has gone to art school. He was obviously talented naive artist before he went to school, but once he left school he had trouble finding his path. After about ten years of experimenting in different styles, he began representing his Maya culture in a brilliantly colored style obviously influenced by cubism. His new style immediately became popular, and was copied by other Maya artists.

In the 1970's Jose Antonio Gonzalez Escobar travelled to the United States to exhibit his paintings with the other major painters of the time, his father and first Tz'utuhil painter, Rafael Gonzalez y Gonzalez, Juan Sisay of Santiago Atitlán and Andres Curruchich the first Kaqchikel painter from San Juan Comalapa. Jose Antonio's many years of painting have firmly established his position among the Tz'utuhil painters. Jose is one of only two Tz'utuhil painters who live in Guatemala City rather than on Lake Atitlán. Two now internationally famous Tz'utuhil artists, Pedro Rafael Gonzalez Chavajay and Mariano Gonzalez Chavajay, began their oil painting careers working with their uncle Jose Antonio.

Domingo Garcia Criado is one of the few San Pedro artists to people his paintings almost exclusively with people wearing the traje of his pueblo—the other artists preferring the traje of the major tourist towns Santiago Atitlán and Chichicastenango. Domingo has stylized the designs on the traje and in nature to such a degree that his paintings while still naive have a definite op-art or art deco connection.

Probably the most famous artist from San Pedro la Laguna is Mariano Gonzalez Chavajay. Mariano along with Pedro Rafael Gonzalez Chavajay are the two most accomplished oil painters from San Pedro. Mariano's specialty is large paintings of Maya life and traditions.

Vicenta Puzul de Gonzalez, the first Tz'utuhil woman oil painter, learned from her husband Mariano Gonzalez Chavajay. Vicenta has a natural ability. She learned quickly and well. Of all of Mariano's students she is the only one who can paint exactly like her husband. Her works are virtually indistinguishable from those of Mariano, except that her faces might be a little softer. For many years she relegated her painting to helping her husband, but in the last few years, with his support, has decided to paint on her own.

Juan Fermin Gonzalez Morales, is the eldest of three brothers who are painters. His work is distinctive because he usually situates his point of view from above. His paintings accurately capture the details of the way of life of Maya people, a way of life that is changing as the young people leave the villages for life in the city, and many traditions disappear.

Emilio Gonzalez Morales is the second of the Morales brothers. He started out painting in the San Pedro style, but in recent years has stopped painting accurate depictions of Maya traditions and instead tries to capture their essence from a different point of view.

By 1990 Matias Gonzalez Chavajay was recognized as one of the best Tz'utuhil Maya artists. His paintings combined attention to detail with a naive charm. Then he decided to stop doing fine paintings and focus on doing paintings quickly for the tourist market. I stopped buying from him because the quality went down, but I recently decided that his work still is charming, even though quickly done.

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