Peruvian indigenist artist Julia Manuela Codesido Estenós (or simply Julia Codesido) was not only a painter, printmaker, and educator but also – starting in the first decades of the 20th century – a feminist activist. Committed to Indigenism and informed by the frequent trips she took to all corners of her native Peru, Codesido developed a unique pictorial language that redefined national identity by embracing its native roots. In her work, the artist not only explored Peruvian identity but also reworked the figure of woman. A feminist activist, Codesido was a member of a number of groups in the early 1920s that defended women’s rights in both the private and public spheres. Painted in vibrant colours, Vendedora ayacuchana (1927) depicts a barefoot woman wrapped in a typical Peruvian blanket. Her features are striking and the look in her eye profound. This work, like all of Codesido’s production from this period, reflected her interest in the aesthetic and sensibility of the Andes. The unidentified woman with muted earth skin tones is seated with her legs tucked underneath her, wearing a dark-colored shawl with vertical stripes of red and green over a purple garment. Her expression is somewhat serious. Her long, dark hair is parted down the middle and falls straight. Codesido was the daughter of a diplomat who was appointed consul of Peru in Liverpool in 1908 and later held the same position in Bordeaux in 1913. She was able to travel and train for several years in Europe, residing in Switzerland, Spain, England and France. In 1918, Codesido returned to her Lima and entered the National School of Fine Arts of Peru (today National Autonomous School of Fine Arts of Peru) where she was a student of the indigenous painter José Sabogal. There, she befriended other women artists such as the engraver Elena Izcue, the painter Teresa Carvallo, and the sculptor Carmen Saco. By the 1930s, Codesido had exhibitions in Mexico City, New York, San Francisco, and Paris.

"Vendedora ayacuchana" by Julia Codesido (Peruvian) - Oil on canvas / c. 1927 - Museo de Arte de Lima (Peru) #WomenInArt #WomanArtist #PortraitofaWoman #FemaleArtist #art #JuliaCodesido #Codesido #MuseodeArtedeLima #OilPainting #WomensArt #PeruvianArt #PeruvianArtist #Indigenism #ArtText #FineArt

La Perezosa (Idle Woman) is a genre painting completed in oil on canvas by Peruvian painter Daniel Hernández Morillo in 1906. It depicts a young fair-skinned woman with auburn hair styled in a bun adorned with small headband. She is wearing a flowing sheer cream-white gown made of light, flowing material that drapes loosely around her body revealing her soft curves. She is resting languidly on a chaise lounge with her head and upper body on a dark crimson velvet pillow and her arms gently folded in front. Her peaceful introspective expression and slightly lowered eyes exude an air of serene yet sensual beauty. Trained initially at the Lima Studio of the Italian Leonardo Barbieri, the painter Daniel Hernández left Peru in 1874 to continue his studies in Paris and Rome. In Europe he achieved a degree of success in official salons with paintings that, in spite of superficial signs of renewal, remained bound in spirit to the narrative and anecdotal painting of the 19th century. This painting is a clear example of this renewed academicism. The pastel tones and the lightness of the facture associate it with the gracious scenes set in the eighteenth century which, in the French rococo spirit, Hernández produced in other canvases. This type of indulgent painting won him favor in Europe’s official painting circles, as well as major awards such as the Gold Medal at the 1900 Exposition Universelle in Paris. From 1918 until his death in 1932, Hernández mostly devoted himself to teaching, as the director of the School of Fine Arts in Lima, Peru. He also produced portraits and historical paintings, a genre that enjoyed brief popularity in the midst of the celebrations surrounding the centenary of Peruvian independence. While the themes of his work did not leave a great mark on the local art scene, his vocation as a teacher encouraged disciples of the stature of Jorge Vinatea Reinoso, who adopted a light palette and fluid brushstroke in their painting.

Perezosa (Idle Woman) by Daniel Hernández Morillo (Peruvian) - Oil on canvas / 1906 - Museo de Arte de Lima (Peru) #womeninart #art #oilpainting #PeruvianArtist #womensart #artwork #MALI #MuseodeArtedeLima #fineart #portraitofawoman #DanielHernándezMorillo #lazy #rococo #academicism #DanielHernández