Christian Bendayán is a visual artist born in the city of Iquitos, known for being one of the most prominent exponents and promoters of Peruvian Amazonian art. Self-taught, his work is inspired by the Amazon: its urban and indigenous visual culture, as well as the life of its inhabitants associated with the milestones and conflicts that have characterised the history of this region. Winner of the National Culture Award of Peru (2012), he has represented his country in different biennials, triennials and fairs around the world; among them are his recent participations in: the Bienal das Amazonias de Belem Do Para (Brazil, 2023); his exhibition Purga presented at the MUSA, as part of the activities of the 35th Guadalajara International Book Fair (Mexico, 2021); and his project Indios Antropófagos, which represented the Peruvian pavilion at the 58th Venice Art Biennale (Italy, 2019). He has also curated more than 30 exhibitions of various Amazonian artists in Peru and abroad and major recent curatorial projects have been Los Ríos Pueden Existir Sin Aguas Pero No Sin Orillas (2022) at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Lima and the direction of AMA de Mitos y Visiones (2021), a virtual documentary mini-series on Amazonian art, produced for the Special Bicentennial Project of Peru. Added to this are a dozen videos and books about Amazonian art published throughout his career. In 2015, together with an outstanding team of artists, curators and cultural managers, he founded Bufeo. Amazonia+Art, a project dedicated to the research, promotion and management of Amazonian art based in Lima and Iquitos. He was director of the National Institute of Culture of Loreto in 2010.
Photo: © Revista Osmosis