Before there was written communication, there was visual communication. Pictures, sculptures, tableaux were used to tell the stories words could not. In Peru, that led to the retablo.
"Santero" boxes, portable altars filled with figures that told a story, were used by pilgrims and soldiers in Europe in medieval times. Some 500 years ago they were taken to Peru by the Spanish Conquistadores and used by the traveling fathers to teach natives about the Catholic faith.
In the Peruvian highlands, the boxes gradually evolved into an integral part of the culture, used to depict not only religious stories but also other aspects of daily life.
Jeronimo Lozano learned about retablos as a boy growing up in the village of Huamanga, Ayacucho, Peru. "This is an area rich in ancient Inca culture and traditional beliefs," he says.
Early in his life, Lozano showed a natural inclination toward art and was encouraged by his teachers to pursue this talent. After being admitted to the School of Fine Arts at the University of Peru, he was encouraged to do a systematic study of folk art traditions and traveled throughout the country to visit the folk artists of the Andes.
In 1979, Lozano returned to his hometown and founded an artist's studio. He and his students produced a variety of folk crafts indigenous to all parts of the country. But Lozano became particularly interested in the retablo.
"I wanted to rescue some of the forgotten crafts of the past. The retablo has long been loved by the common people of Peru, as it reflects their customs, beliefs and personalities in a concise, visual narrative. I began to make it my specialty."
Little did he know where that interest would take him.
Fast forward several decades and visit Lozano in his Salt Lake apartment. He is surrounded by retablos and the pieces of retablos. Molded figures await drying. Dried figures await painting. Painted figures await mounting in boxes. Finished retablos are stacked on floors and shelves and worktables.
His retablos range in size from about a half-inch up to 4 or 5 feet. He has used Chicklets gum boxes, match boxes, gourds, bamboo, sea shells, handmade wooden chests and more to house his colorful figures.
It is the scene of a man who loves what he is doing and is eager to share one of his native art forms with the world.
Some of his work is sold at the Art Access Gallery in Salt Lake City, but Lozano has taken his retablos to art shows and cultural festivals throughout the west. He recently returned from the Trailing of the Sheep festival in Ketchum/Hailey, Idaho, where his retablos depicting the Good Shepherd and his sheep were a particular hit.
"I make many, many sheep," Lozano says with a laugh.
Lozano's efforts have also recently earned him a national Fund for Folk Culture Award, underwritten by the Ford Foundation, with support from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and the San Francisco Foundation.
"It's a very prestigious award," says Carol Edison, folk arts program manager for the Utah Arts Council. "He is one of only 26 recipients nationwide who received the grant."
Part of the grant money will be used to make a series of retablos contrasting the sheep-herding culture of the West with the llama-herding culture of the Andes.
Lozano is also a past recipient of Utah Governor's Folk Arts Award. "He's such an amazing artist, such an amazing person," Edison says. "He's always so happy, so upbeat."
Equally amazing is the story of how he got where he is today.
While studying folk arts in Peru, Lozano learned many of the traditional folk dances so he could depict dancers in his retablos. He was invited to come to Utah as part of a folk-dancing group participating in a festival held in Bountiful in 1994.
"Early in his life, he had been in a car accident and had developed hearing problems," Edison explains. Working with the people he met at the festival, he was able to obtain help and sponsors so he could stay for surgeries to help his hearing.
And while all that was going on, he received word that "my parents and many friends were killed by the 'Shining Path' terrorist group. I was warned not to return to my village. Because of this I have no reason to return to Peru at this time."
Lozano now has INS status as an "artist of extraordinary merit," says Edison.
In addition to doing his art work, Lozano works full time as a janitor and attends classes at Salt Lake Community College. He is studying English, which is actually his third language; he grew up speaking Quechua and learned Spanish when he was 16. But he is also talking other classes. "I would like to become a teacher," he says.
Since coming to Utah, he has included local culture in his retablos, depicting such things as Joseph Smith's vision, pioneers, rodeo scenes and more. "Any customs of the U.S. I now mix with those of my own culture of Peru," he says. The Nativity story is still a popular subject, as is music, dance and other celebrations. "It should depict a custom or tell a dramatic story," he explains. "Think of it like a stage play with all of the actors on the stage at one time. It can be happy or sad or funny."
Lozano explains how he makes the figures: boiling up a mixture of flour and water to make a dough that is then mixed with a small amount of plaster of Paris. The figures are all modeled by hand. "The exterior of the box is traditionally painted with multi-color designs based on stylized plants and flowers or woven textile patterns," he explains.
Lozano has traveled throughout the state teaching people, particularly children, to make retablos. One of his favorite groups were some Navajo children in Bluff. "They loved my name. They confused it with their chief, Geronimo."
It is fun, he says, to share your culture. It is fun to share the things that make you unique. It is fun to be able to communicate without words.
E-mail: carma@desnews.com