Acrylic on Canvas
39 inches by 59 inches
I have been working with Alfredo Zagaceta since 2015, after meeting him in Pucallpa, Peru by chance through Don Jose Campos.
Alfredo became an apprentice at a young age of the legendary and now deceased shamanic painter, Pablo Amaringo (1938-2009) at the Usko-Ayar (Quechua word for "Spiritual Prince") School of Amazonian Painting. Recognized as one of the world’s great visionary artists, Pablo Amaringo was renowned for his intricate, colorful paintings inspired by his shamanic visions. A master communicator of the plant medicine experience--where snakes, jaguars, subterranean beings, celestial palaces, aliens, and spacecraft all converge--Amaringo’s art presents a doorway to the transcendent worlds of ayahuasca intended for contemplation, meditation, and inspiration. Pablo Amaringo trained as a curandero in the Amazon, healing himself and others from the age of ten, but retired in 1977 to become a full-time painter and art teacher at his Usko-Ayar school in Pucullpa, Peru. The author of Ayahuasca Visions: The Religious Iconography of a Peruvian Shaman (1991). His art has been displayed around the world and his last major exhiubiution of his work was at the ACA Galleries in New York. Alfredo has also become immensely successful as a visionary artist bringing his paintings to galleries in New York, Miami, Los Angeles, Chicago, Japan, and Europe.
We feel very grateful to be able to support Alfredo, as he is a pillar in his community teaching and empowering the youth and many people in need from all backgrounds and ages around him. The prices are set by Alfredo and the money goes to him and his community -- he offers me a percentage in exchange for assistance in selling the artwork. USKO-AYAR has over 700 students and was first created by Pablo Amaringo, anthropologist, Luis Eduardo, and his wife Sirpa Rasanen. The school is free of charge and open to all -- you can read more about Alfredo and his connection to USKO-AYAR and Pablo Amaringo in this interview I did with him and fellow painter and friend, Moises Llerena in 2016 for Reality Sandwich
Alfredo's bio:
From his humble beginnings in Pucallpa in the Ucayali region of the Peruvian Amazon jungle, Alfredo studied and apprenticed with Pablo Amaringo. Don Pablo, as they called him, is best known for his Neo-Amazonico style landscapes and his USKO-AYAR Amazonian School of Painting. During a four year period, in exchange for his school tuition, Don Pablo graciously allowed Alfredo to live with him and work off the cost. Alfredo helped with everything from daily chores to teaching art classes. He had the opportunity to participate in many collective art exhibitions in various parts of Peru, The United States, Europe, Japan and Norway. During this time Alfredo immersed himself in the jungle wisdom taught by Don Pablo. Acquiring the ability to receive the transmissions of the spirit realm, Alfredo leaned to interpret their essence onto to the canvas.
Today, three of Alfredo’s paintings hang in the International Museum of Children’s Art in Norway. Alfredo recently participated in the film, “and so, I tell them to paint.” It tells the story of Don Pablo’s school and students, its Maestro, and their stunning body of work. Alfredo’s art is truly an opportunity to delve into and feel the resonance of the spirit dimension within the jungle kingdom.
Alfredo lives with his family in Pucallpa, paints in the Neo-Amazonico and the Amazonia sub-realistic style and helps Don Jose Campos when needed. He says that his passion is painting, and that he will paint until he can no longer lift a brush.