In Depth in San Salvador

Fernando llort: El Salvador's Preeminent Artist

Fernando Llort, El Salvador's most internationally famous and nationally revered living artist, was born in San Salvador in 1949. Interestingly, although he displayed an early talent for art and architecture, his signature style only began to emerge in his 20s after he relocated to France to study theology. It was during that trip that Llort began to appreciate and identify with his native country, and this would heavily influence the style of art we see today on everything from crosses to clocks on sale in markets around the country.

Upon his return in 1972, Llort moved from San Salvador to the little northern village of La Palma and started an art workshop -- "La Semilla de Dios" or "God's Seed" -- from which he taught locals how to convey their lives through art. Initially his style included simple shapes and colorful patterns, along with references to El Salvadoran life, such as small homes with tile roofs, plants, and animals. Later, as El Salvador's war cast a pall over the country, Llort began to include more religious references in his art. His style of art has since become ubiquitous within El Salvador and has been shown in galleries around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, the Vatican, and the White House Museum in Washington, D.C. Perhaps his most famous work currently appears on the front of San Salvador's National Cathedral.

Llort left La Palma and returned to San Salvador in 1979 as the talk of war began to escalate. There, he founded the gallery and nonprofit "Arbol de Dios," or God's Tree, from which a portion of sales helps foster art appreciation around the country. He remains in San Salvador today with his wife and three children, and continues to produce art, working with ceramics, lithographs, and engravings.