Epifanio Irizarry

EPIFANIO IRIZARRI, (Puerto Rico, 1915 - 2001)
"Cucaña".
Oil on canvas adhered to tablex.
Signed in the lower right corner.
Measurements: 54 x 32 cm, 58.50 x 37.50 cm (frame).

He was a painter, draftsman and teacher. He received formation with the Ponce artists Horacio Castaing, Librado Net and Miguel Pou. In 1934 he moved to New York, and in 1942 he joined the armed forces. Between 1950 and 1953 he studied at the Art Students League of New York, where he was a student of artists such as Reginald Marsh and Robert Brackman, among others. Upon returning to Puerto Rico, he joined the Graphics Workshop of the Community Education Division, working as an illustrator until 1963. He then returned to Ponce, where he devoted himself exclusively to painting and teaching art. Throughout his career, he received several awards, such as a scholarship from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation in 1957 and the first prize in watercolor from the Ateneo Puertorriqueño in 1963. He had outstanding exhibitions, such as those presented at the Museo de la Universidad de Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus (1964), at the Ateneo Puertorriqueño (1970) and at the Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña (1978). His work focuses on costumbrista themes, reflecting scenes of Puerto Rican folklore and landscape. Inspired by his hometown, Ponce, he painted scenes such as bomba and plena dances, carnival and coastal landscapes. His style is characterized by the sober use of color and a loose, expressive brushstroke.