Alejandro Mario Yllanes
Encyclopedia
Alejandro Mario Yllanes was an Aymara painter and printmaker from Bolivia
. He disappeared from the public spotlight in 1946, after he was awarded, but did not claim, the Guggenheim Fellowship
.
in 1913. He first worked as a tin miner. His art career began with an exhibition in his hometown in 1930, when he was only 19 years old. He went on to show in La Paz
and other cities, including Mexico City
. As an easel painter, Yllanes was extremely militant and portrayed the Bolivian government's mistreatment of Indians in his paintings. The Bolivian government exiled the artist due to his political stance.
In the 1940s, Yllanes served as a cultural attache to the Bolivian Embassy in Mexico. During this time he had a solo exhibition at the Palacio de Bellas Artes
, and Diego Rivera
wrote the introduction to the show's catalog.
Yllanes moved to 419 West 115th Street in New York City
. He returned to Mexico, leaving his artwork behind in New York. It is thought he died there in 1960, but in fact, not much is known of his later years. Who's Who in Art continued to list him until 1972.
His work is in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art
, and he received much critical acclaim during his lifetime.
Nicholas Clemente curated a show of Yllanes work in New York in 1992, entitled, "Being Discovered: The Spanish Conquest from the Amer-Indian Point of View." He says that Yllanes remains a highly popular artist in Bolivia.
In 1934, he painted tempera murals on the schoolhouse walls of Warisata, a rural commune on the Bolivian shores of Lake Titicaca
. Although never fully completed, these mural portray daily labors of the commune and focused on sustainable productivity. The murals included scenes of ferryman crossing Lake Titicaca on reed boat
s and Aymara people farming, working with leather, and having a picnic. Other murals portrayed Andean history and cultural beliefs.
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
. He disappeared from the public spotlight in 1946, after he was awarded, but did not claim, the Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
.
Art career
Alejandro Yllanes was born in OruroOruro, Bolivia
Oruro is a city in Bolivia with a population of 235,393 , located about equidistant between La Paz and Sucre at approximately 3710 meters above sea level. It is the capital of the department of Oruro....
in 1913. He first worked as a tin miner. His art career began with an exhibition in his hometown in 1930, when he was only 19 years old. He went on to show in La Paz
La Paz
Nuestra Señora de La Paz is the administrative capital of Bolivia, as well as the departmental capital of the La Paz Department, and the second largest city in the country after Santa Cruz de la Sierra...
and other cities, including Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
. As an easel painter, Yllanes was extremely militant and portrayed the Bolivian government's mistreatment of Indians in his paintings. The Bolivian government exiled the artist due to his political stance.
In the 1940s, Yllanes served as a cultural attache to the Bolivian Embassy in Mexico. During this time he had a solo exhibition at the Palacio de Bellas Artes
Palacio de Bellas Artes
The Palacio de Bellas Artes is the most important cultural center in Mexico City as well as the rest of the country of Mexico...
, and Diego Rivera
Diego Rivera
Diego María de la Concepción Juan Nepomuceno Estanislao de la Rivera y Barrientos Acosta y Rodríguez was a prominent Mexican painter born in Guanajuato, Guanajuato, an active communist, and husband of Frida Kahlo . His large wall works in fresco helped establish the Mexican Mural Movement in...
wrote the introduction to the show's catalog.
Yllanes moved to 419 West 115th Street in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He returned to Mexico, leaving his artwork behind in New York. It is thought he died there in 1960, but in fact, not much is known of his later years. Who's Who in Art continued to list him until 1972.
His work is in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
, and he received much critical acclaim during his lifetime.
Nicholas Clemente curated a show of Yllanes work in New York in 1992, entitled, "Being Discovered: The Spanish Conquest from the Amer-Indian Point of View." He says that Yllanes remains a highly popular artist in Bolivia.
Artwork
Yllanes was inspired by Bolivia's precolumbian heritage and the native peoples of his homelands. His stylized, figurative work often includes Andean clothing, such as woolen helmets. He also painted landscapes, often on humble supports, such as burlap. Yllanes also draw in graphite, charcoal and ink, and printed with woodblocks and lithography. His palette tended towards warm earth tones.In 1934, he painted tempera murals on the schoolhouse walls of Warisata, a rural commune on the Bolivian shores of Lake Titicaca
Lake Titicaca
Lake Titicaca is a lake located on the border of Peru and Bolivia. It sits 3,811 m above sea level, making it the highest commercially navigable lake in the world...
. Although never fully completed, these mural portray daily labors of the commune and focused on sustainable productivity. The murals included scenes of ferryman crossing Lake Titicaca on reed boat
Reed boat
Reed boats and rafts, along with dugout canoes and other rafts, are among the oldest known types of boats. Often used as traditional fishing boats, they are still used in a few places around the world, though they have generally been replaced with planked boats. Reed boats can be distinguished from...
s and Aymara people farming, working with leather, and having a picnic. Other murals portrayed Andean history and cultural beliefs.
Published work
- Mario Yllanes, Alejandro and Linda Weintraub. Being discovered: the Spanish conquest from the Amer-Indian point of view: Alejandro Mario Yllanes: from the collection of Edward and Teresa Ford. Annandale-on-Hudson, New York: Edith C. Blum Art Institute, 1992.