Praying hands Painting

I am from Chile, I was born in Santiago in February 1966. I grew up in an old house with long and lined halls with many huge rooms that ends in a large backyard with big trees. My father was a painter and musician, he was my first inspiration, I always saw him painting and drawing and playing his violin. Since my childhood I spent endless hours drawing at home and at school. At age 17 (1983) I joined the Faculty of Arts of the University of Chile to study Bachelor of Arts and I ended my degree on September 15, 1989. In the school of arts, I experiment with different artistic paths in vogue in those years: Pop art, drippings, Ensamblage, collage, Enviroment, but in my heart my interest was in traditional art. My first solo exhibitions, at that stage I painted Chilean cave figures and quotes from Leonardo in newspapers of the 20s, where the old newspaper images and letters act as support and as part of the composition. However, I never left my practice portrait and I never stop learning traditional techniques. I received commissions from colleagues, I did exhibitions and began teaching painting and drawing. In 2007 I participated in a colective exhibition in Manhattan, on Jedite Galleries. An interesting drawing, "La Gioconda in the Torres del Paine", people really enjoyed it and it even was sold. That trip was very important for me because I could spend long hours for days at the Met, the Guggenheim and Moma, observing and studying the great masters of art. Then I received more work from institutions such as the National Library, the University of Chile, fire companies, private collections. In 2009 I won a scholarship to study painting with the great realist painter Guillermo Muñoz Vera, in his academy in Chinchón, Spain. This Pictorial experience was a great growth, both technically and culturally. From this moment, along with portraiture, I got closer to religious painting, playing religious, marine paintings and some institutions tables for larger format. I am currently in new challenges painting murals for some Catholic churches of Santiago and other institutions.