Santiago Carbonell

Santiago Carbonell was born in 1960 in Quito, Ecuador, with Spanish citizenship. He began to paint at the age of 6, and during his youth, he lived in Ecuador, Spain, the United States, and Italy, to later come to Mexico. His great discipline, studies, and refined self-taught talent led him to travel the world, surprising the viewer with a personal perception of painting.

In 1981 he mounted his first exhibition. He is considered a precursor of photorealism and the most significant representative of that genre in Latin America.

He was part of a group of young people influenced by informalism. His work is realistic but combines elements of romanticism. It is based on direct observation of reality, taking up the realism of the 19th century.

Some of the awards he has won are in 1982, from the Catalan American Institute of Cooperation, and in 1980 the Reina Sofía Scholarship for Fine Arts.