Oswaldo Guayasamin was an man that grew up as a misfit and was told that he would not amount to anything. As he grew older he began to use art as a way to portray the people he knew, the culture he lived and the pain he felt towards war and oppression.
Painting on cardboard, plywood and hemp bags, left a unique impression on me. Sketches with chalk, oil and acyclic paintings displayed Picasso like images that moved me. There was one painting that was thick with texure made from oil and different colored dirt. He liked to paint mothers with their sons and men that were tortured in wars and demonstrations.
My favorite collection was the Hand Collection. Guayasamin believed that you can tell a lot by a mans hands. The photo here is my favorite. This is called "Manos De La Ternura" (Hands of Tenderness).
Guayasamin passes away in 1999 but his paintings still represent not only Ecuador but South America as well.
The other photo is of the equator here in Quito. We played about for 2 hours here. There was a lot more here to do than I had thought. There was a planetarium, small displays of other countries in the world and a museum of the native people of Ecuador.
I leave for Colombia tomorrow. I will let you know how it goes!
