Celia Leyton, her indigenous painting, portrait of the Mapuche’s cultural heritage

Abstract

This research explores key aspects of the life and work of the Chilean artist Celia Leyton Vidal (Santiago de Chile, 1895-1975). Celia Leyton’s research and painting work was mainly developed in La Araucanía, the southern Chilean region where she spent most of her adult life. As a prominent middle school teacher, art researcher and painter, Leyton made a significant contribution to the academic art domain, and was devoted to the promotion and dissemination of the Mapuche culture and values. Her prolific field work includes annotations, sketches, descriptions and analysis of her research experiences, all of which led to the creation of numerous paintings and documents, including catalogues and an autobiography. Fearing it was endangered in modern times, the artist devotedly dedicated her entire life and work to disseminate Mapuche culture, virtues and worldview. A first biographic review provided a general understanding about the painter’s life, her academic background, gender-related struggles, as well as the influential references that contributed to shape her social and ethical profile, and her visual representations and symbolism. Finally, we discuss a formal and symbolic analysis of a self-portrait, considered as one of her most important art works, and which reveals the true value of her artistic and cultural project.