Juan Gallegos

Juan Gallegos was born in Puerto Montt, Chile, on October 11, 1952. The first ten years of his life were spent in the southern-most part of Chile; the long winters of freezing rain and snow were spent with his mother and her family. His grandfather Bartalome, a native from the canal region of the archipelago of Chiloe, peopled his mind and consciousness with his stories of history and legend.

From that moment the search for an expressive form to represent these legends began: at first with small sculptures in sandstone and wood, trying to give form to such characters as 'El Trauco', the father of all children of single mothers; 'The Widow', the woman who falls in love with solitary voyagers; 'The Warlock'; 'El Caleuche', the phantom ship; 'La Pincoya', the Indian siren. Later on, He would integrate these with figures from Easter Island, such as 'Tolomiro' and the birds 'Manutaras', 'Aku-Aku' and 'Kaba-Kaba', adding more mystery and complexity to his work. For Juan, mythology is poetry, and poetry is the closest thing to truth. At thirteen he began to draw and paint, trying to integrate legends and landscapes. Soon after, he was invited to participate in a collective exhibition along with other local artists, at the 'Casa del Arte Diego Rivera', the largest cultural centre in the south of Chile. At the same time he began to attend the academy of Painting and Sculpture, 'Studio Amancay', in Puerto Montt. From that time on he has presented a yearly exhibition of his most recent works.

Thanks to the support of local artists, he participated in different events such as the Autumn Salons in Valpariso, Valdivia and Concepcion.

In 1970 Juan entered the University of Concepcion where he alternated study and artistic work until 1974. On November 20th, 1975, he arrived in Canada as a landed immigrant. His first concerns were centered on containing the cultural shock he was experiencing and finding points in common with Canadian culture. His first contacts were in northern Manitoba and later in Yellowknife, NWT and then in the Yukon, in Whitehorse.

For Juan it was like finding his roots - the similarity of the landscape and the physical appearance of the natives from the North with those of the Southern Cone touched him deeply. He was struck as well by the similarity of their history, myths, and legends with that of his own people. Whenever it was possible, he travelled to the North, which became the ultimate resource for his new works. In 1980, he went to live in northern Quebec, in the Lac St. Jean region. He was in close contact with the Innu Natives, living and working with them on the reserves at Pointe Bleu, for three years. This gave rise to an integrated artistic series.

The work presented here projects a new dimension in his search within the frame-work of modern art, as much in the technical area as in the artistic medium. Modern art fascinates him because it represents the conquering spirit of artistic freedom. However, in the name of supposed modernism many frauds have been legitimized, and one finds in the most unexpected places a design which is bereft of artistic value, and only under the title of modern art has it found a place which it does not merit.

Because Juan was forced to leave his country of origin, he has had the opportunity to discover other realities, enriching life experiences, but at a cost of much work, isolation and loneliness. As Wilfredo Lam has said, "The recovery of my childhood full of superstitions and a legacy of myths, and the ones created in my own imagination, was hindered." Certainly the only thing left from that time on was his old desire to integrate in painting the transculturalization which has found a place among aboriginals, immigrants and all of the elements which have combined to form our Americas.

He has vindicated the past; he believes that this trans-cultural mix has created a new entity of unquestionable value among people. That is to say that everything original is a mixture.