Pincel: A Worldwide Window to Costa Rica’s Rich Art Legacy

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Pincel: A Worldwide Window to Costa Rica’s Rich Art Legacy

Howler Staff - SEP 02, 2019

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Welcome to PINCEL: A Worldwide Window to Costa Rica’s Rich Art Legacy. If the vast richness of Costa Rica’s artistic legacy has long been a well-kept secret, lack of mainstream exposure likely explains why. Just over a year ago, that accessibility barrier was lifted permanently by an open window to the widest possible world.

Pinacoteca Costarricense Electronica (PINCEL) — translated as Paint Brush Art Gallery — now provides virtual assurance that the past, present and future of Costa Rican art can neither remain undiscovered nor be forgotten. As the country’s first-ever e-cultural platform of its kind, PINCEL paves the way for more online galleries and museums that visitors can explore anytime, from anywhere.

‘Through this website, Costa Rica
can be seen through the eyes of the artist.’

“This is a new experience for those who are nourished by art,” said Maria E. Guardia Yglesias, founder and curator, when PINCEL was unveiled on August 23, 2018 at the Costa Rican Art Museum in San José. “Perhaps for many, it will mean the only resource for getting to know Costa Rican art.”

Besides being an opportunity for countless experienced artists to show their works publicly or widely for the first time, Guardia explained, PINCEL is an ideal showcase for young emerging talent to gain early recognition.

Above all, she added, “through this website, Costa Rica can be seen through the eyes of the artist.”

From a cultural heritage standpoint, PINCEL is a watershed achievement with an open-ended timeline. The initial collection of works by some 280 Costa Rican artists dates back to the 1840s and extends to the late 1970s. Subsequent time periods will include current artists and others spanning the 1980s, 1990s and into the 21st century. Being a digital, interactive platform makes it possible for PINCEL to be constantly updated with new artworks and information. The extensive archive already includes more than 20,000 works, encompassing visual arts, sculptures, artistic photography, graphic art, monuments and emblematic creations.

A key element of the PINCEL project, undertaken and largely funded by Guardia, was to create a comprehensive historical database of national artists. Her investigations over the course of nearly 20 years were supported by the University of Costa Rica, as well as a research grant from Florida Ice & Farm Co. (FIFCO).