Painting by Willy Flores

Starting in late January, the lovable city of San Jose will welcome more dogs than usual. These dogs, however, are not part of the million stray and community dogs that roam Costa Rica; these canines are an important part of the body of work of Willy Flores, and they are currently on display at the Sophia Wanamaker art gallery of the Centro Cultural in San Pedro.

Mr. Flores was born in Mexico to Honduran parents. He graduated from the National School of Fine Arts in Honduras in 1997 and moved to Costa Rica three years later. In 2007 he traveled to Europe to study the expressionist masters. Since he completed his early arts studies, he has exhibited in Costa Rica, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama. He has received awards in Costa Rica and Honduras, and his work has featured in newspapers and magazines in both countries.

The Sophia Wanamaker gallery in San Pedro is currently showing 15 paintings of mixed techniques by Mr. Flores. Dogs and circus scenes are the central themes in each of these paintings. Mr. Flores has been incorporating these two themes into his expressionist and surrealistic works since at least 2009. In a 2010 exhibit at the National Gallery of San Jose, Mr. Flores explained to national newspaper La Nacion his predilection for canines and the circus:

“I use the circus theme as a metaphor of life as a grand spectacle in which our roles are interchangeable:

Sometimes we are circus performers and other times we are expectators.”

Aside from circus tents, clowns and balloons, he features dogs that are offset at a certain distance from central scenes in his paintings:

“We distance ourselves. It’s a condition that allows us to find ourselves when we escape daily distractions so that we can reflect. In this fashion, we have also distanced ourselves from nature and human values only to fall prey to artificial paradise.

Dogs are special to me as I have been surrounded by them since I was a child. Moreover, I have experienced sadness when despotic people have poisoned dogs for no reason. People should realize that animal abuse is self-abuse.”

About the Sophia Wanamaker galleries:

Located in the Centro Cultural Costarricense Norteamericano in San Pedro, La Sabana, and Alajuela, the Sophia Wanamaker Galleries promote the appreciation of visual arts, focusing on innovative and experimental tendencies. This project has emerged as a direct result of Centro Cultural’s multicultural, educational environment.

Each of our galleries schedules shows of Costa Rican and international artists throughout the year.

Among the services offered by the galleries, guided visits can be scheduled in advance, in coordination with gallery administration and according to the established schedule of shows.

About the Center:

The Centro Cultural Costarricense Norteamericano (Costa Rican and US Cultural Center) is a Costa Rican non-profit association founded in 1945 and declared an organization of public interest in 1993 by the national government.

With more than 66 years experience, we are pioneers in English teaching in Costa Rica.

Our mission is to be leaders in innovative language teaching and in the promotion of inter-cultural experiences.

Our vision is to enrich quality of life, expand horizons and create opportunities through cultural exchanges between the peoples of Costa Rica and the United States of America.

For more information contact:

• [email protected].
• 2207-7500
• The Center is located 150 meters north of the AutoMercado in Barrio Los Yoses, San Pedro.