Collection: Marcos Ortiz

Marcos Ortiz is Nivaclé. He was born in 1952 in Chaco'i, near Villa Hayes, and died on April 12, 2022. His parents, originally from the Pilcomayo River, were visiting their Maka relatives in Chaco'i, when Marcos was born, the second of seven children. Marcos spent his childhood among the Maká, attending his first school classes at a missionary school.

When Marcos was about 10 years old, his family returned to central Chaco. He finished sixth grade at the Yalve Sanga school and then worked as a day laborer.

When he got married, he moved to Yíclócat, where he met a Wichi sculptor who taught him to carve little animals out of palo santo. His favourite animals are wild pigs. With his carvings he won a prize in a Christmas competition at the Hermann Guggiari Forest, which encouraged him to continue carving figures to this day. His relative Esteban encouraged him to draw his favourite animals and so he began drawing a year ago.

Marcos liked to draw for those who appreciate his drawings. He loved to draw animals, especially wild pigs - the tagua - and skunks. He says: «First I study, slowly thinking about what I want to work on. There are many things in my mind, first I see a pig and then other animals. Then, when I know what I am going to draw, I finish sooner. The forest is the most difficult to draw, because of the leaves. First I draw the animals, then the forest and finally, the grass. I draw the lines first with a pencil and then I paint with a pen. The skunks have to be drawn twice with the pen so that they are really black. I finish a drawing in two days, if I work well.»

He draws inspiration from the environment, from the trees in his yard – from their branches and leaves, when the light passes through them – and from the countryside near his house. Sometimes he would go into the mountains to observe the shapes of the trees and bushes.

Source: https://ccdl2.blogspot.com/2020/01/marcos-ortiz-chacoi-chaco.html