Jeronimo Lozano
Jeronimo Lozano was born in Huamanga, a village in the Andes Mountains of Peru. He began learning the traditional arts of his native region at a young age. With his natural talent, he was encouraged and supported in furthering his artistic abilities. He studied for many years, and became an accomplished and nationally recognized artist. Growing terrorism of Sendero Luminoso(Shining Path) forced him to leave Peru in the 1980s. He has received many awards and recognitions for his artwork across the country. He enjoys being a teaching artist and facilitates retablo workshops upon request. In 2008, the National Endowment for the Arts recognized him as a National Heritage Fellow.
"From the time that I was a child in the village of Huamanga, Ayacucho, Peru I was exposed to the various folk art traditions of the Andes. This is an area rich in ancient Inca culture and traditional beliefs. I had a natural disposition toward art and was encouraged by my elementary school teachers to further my art education. I was selected to attend various "colegios" that specialized in art training and eventually was admitted to the School of Fine Arts at the University of Peru. It was during this time that I was directed back toward my indigenous heritage and was encouraged to make a systematic study of the folk art traditions of the Peruvian people. For twelve years, from 1967 to 1979 I traveled throughout Peru to study and learn from the traditional folk artisans of the Andes. In December of 1979 I returned to the city of my birth and founded an artist’s studio named "Artists Workshop Guamangensis". There I worked and studied to perfect fifty different specialities of handmade Peruvian folkcrafts from all parts and peoples of Peru."