Ecuador The Arts

PAINTING
Indigenismo is the movement that defines 20th-century Ecuadorian art. Among the school’s most famous members is Oswaldo Guayasamín, known for his politically charged depictions of indigenous suffering. Among Guayasamín’s most controversial work is a series of 23 panels painted in the meeting hall of the Ecuadorian Congress in 1988. The best place to see Guayasamín’s work today is at his museum in Quito. Indígena Eduardo Kingman, who is famous for painting stylized and shadowy figures, is considered by some to be the trailblazer of the indigenismo movement. Camilo Egas and Manuel Rendón also participated in the indigenismo movement, although their styles also reveal a European influence.

Perhaps the best representations of indigenous life and struggle stem from the brushes of the tribesmen themselves. Among the most famous indigenous painters are the artists of Tigua. Their brightly colored paintings drawn on sheep-hide depict, in their own words, the “reality of indigenous life now and in the past—our customs, our work in the fields, our festivals, our myths and legends, our vision of nature and our dreams.” Ramiro Jácome is the most famous painter of recent times, known for his deeply colored, abstract human figures. His and other modern Ecuadorian artists’ paintings are displayed at Quito’s Casa de la Cultura.

• Music

Ecuador’s traditional music combines Spanish and pre-Hispanic musical styles. The most characteristic Andean instrument is the panpipe or rondador, over 2000 years old. Its relative, the zampoñ ...more

• Literature

Before the advent of writing, indigenous Ecuadorians had established an oral tradition intimately linked to their religious practices. Spanish colonialism destroyed much of this tradition and replaced ...more

• Architecture

While Ecuador is home to some of the most spectacular architectural achievements in history, many of the area’s ruins no longer are standing because the Spanish either destroyed or built over the ...more

• Popular Culture

MUSIC. Despite numerous North American intruders to the Ecuadorian musical scene, traditional Andean music, including El Pasillo, El Yarabi, and El Pasacalle, still fills streets and restaurants. The slow ...more