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Dance and Music Expressionist Painting, 'The Dance'

Product ID: U15795

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Dance and Music Expressionist Painting, 'The Dance'

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This item is available for pre-order and will ship within 2 to 8 weeks. Learn More

Available in 2 to 8 weeks. Learn More

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Details

Childhood memories inspire this merry composition by Maria Elena Curruchiche. "When I was a little girl I used go with my mother to sell sweets at different fairs, and at night we'd get invited to the houses of the different guilds or brotherhoods to join the celebrations," explains the Guatemalan artist. The background is dark in this composition, symbolizing the lack of electricity in those days; the only light came from paper lanterns. "Parents and children would dance barefoot on the muddy ground to the beat of the marimba, and everyone would be wearing their traditional costumes."

Titled "El baile" in Spanish.

Made in Guatemala

  • Oil on canvas
  • Arrives unframed
  • Stretched
  • Signed by the artist
  • Free Gift Wrap? No
  • Premium Gift Wrap? No
  • 0.35 kgs
  • 0.8 lbs
  • 45.72 cm H x 60.96 cm W x 1.91 cm D
  • 18" H x 24" W x 0.8" D
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Maria Elena Curruchiche

Meet the Artist

Artfully crafted by Maria Elena Curruchiche from Central America.

 

Meet the Artist

Maria Elena Curruchiche

Maria Elena Curruchiche

"With the money I manage to save I'll be able to improve my house and convert it into a museum were the young and the public can obtain information on Maya culture, paintings and weaves."

"Mine was a happy childhood growing up in San Juan Comalapa. I used to accompany my parents, aunts and maternal grandma... when they'd sell bread and traditional sweets at the fairs of nearby villages. When I was eight years old my mom began teaching me how to weave, and a couple of years later my aunts taught me how to make traditional sweets, which I used to sell and so contribute to the family's finances. I can still make them and they are delicious!

"My mother was severely injured in the earthquake of 1976 and was bedridden for a long time. My aunt died in the earthquake and we stopped going out to sell. I was left without a job so all I did was housework. Thanks to my dad's job we always had food on our table and paid our basic expenses. He painted on canvas, and he also restored antiques and religious images. One day he asked me to help him by painting the backgrounds of his compositions and that's how I began to get familiarized with mixing colors and handling the paintbrush.

"Art actually runs through my veins, my ancestors painted and I love to paint. When I was a little girl I used to spend hours watching my grandfather Andres and my dad paint. Grandad is renowned as the famous Comalpa artist, Don Andres Curruchich. My last name is spelled 'Curruchiche' because they made a mistake on my birth certificate, the family name is Curruchich.

"There are many reasons that attract me to painting, and I'm inspired by the fact that through this art form I can convey the work of indigenous women as well as our grandparents' culture: their values, customs, and legends.

"I am very grateful to father for taking an interest in me and for all the effort he put in teaching me this art. That's why I'm now teaching it to my granddaughter and my cousin's children.

"I fondly remember the first canvas I painted. It was of a woman and her cows by the river, she wearing a hat and sitting under the shade of a tree. It was a small and beautiful painting and I sold it to a North American woman who really liked it.

"I began to paint in earnest by the end of 1976 but there have been times when I've stopped painting, especially when family situations absorb me. For example when my daughter died in 1988 I didn't paint for three years. This made me very depressed, to the point of wishing to end it all. Those were sad and difficult times for me, which I managed to get through by thinking that my daughter would wish to see me calm and facing life. That's why I've been working very hard to achieve this dream with a lot of effort, opening my own studio-gallery.

"Now my greatest illusion is to see my paintings sell, and to take the history of painting and of weaving to a national and international level. That way, with the money I manage to save I'll be able to improve my house and eventually convert it into a real museum were the young and the general public can obtain information on Maya culture, paintings and weaves. Hopefully they'll want to learn more, and conserve the beautiful traditions and techniques that we have here in Guatemala.

"As a woman, it hasn't been easy to balance the time I dedicate to my family and to work. It is a daily challenge which in the end brings me a lot of satisfaction and inspires me to carry on. And when I have time, I love to cook because it gives me great pleasure. I love sharing it with family and friends – and the best thing is they always congratulate me!

"I've participated in several exhibits both nationally and internationally, including San Francisco, California. I am part of a kaqchikeles women artists group and in 2003 we received Guatemala's National Order of Cultural Heritage. In 2008 the German Institute, G&T Continental Foundation and the National Newspapers and Periodicals Library of Guatemala honored my work and awarded with a medal for Artist of the Year. In 2010 the Tourist Institute of Guatemala chose me as a representative of Maya artists at Shanghai's expo sponsored by China's Chamber of Commerce and Cooperation in Guatemala. I hope to continue representing my country and its hard-working people.

"I am thankful to Novica customers for appreciating our art, because that way you’re supporting artists and their communities.”

View full artist profile

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WOMEN S M L XL XXL
4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22
BUST 35 - 36 37 - 38 39 - 41 42 - 44 46 - 48
WAIST 27 - 28 29 - 30 31 - 33 34 - 36 38 - 40
HIPS 37 - 38 39 - 40 42 - 43 45 - 46 49 - 50
MEN S M L XL XXL
CHEST 36 - 38 39 - 41 42 - 44 46 - 48 50 - 52
WAIST 30 - 32 32 - 34 35 - 37 38 - 41 43 - 45
NECK 14 - 14.5 15 - 15.5 16 - 16.5 17 - 17.5 18 - 18.5
SLEEVE 32.5 33.5 34.5 35.5 36.5
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WOMEN S M L XL  
4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22
inches 26 - 30 28 - 32 31 - 35 34 - 38 38 - 42
cm 76 - 86 81.5 - 91.5 86.5 - 96.5 91.5 - 101.5 96.5 - 106.5

+/- tolerance: 0.5 inches or 1.25 cm

MEN S M L XL XXL
inches 30 - 34 32 - 36 35 - 39 39 - 43 43 - 47
cm 81.5 - 91.5 86.5 - 96.5 91.5 - 101.5 96.5 - 106.5 109 - 119

+/- tolerance: 0.5 inches or 1.25 cm

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