Jose Antonio Velasquez, Honduran (1906 - 1983)  | José Antonio Velasquez was born on February 8, 1906 in Charity, a small town in the department of Valle, in the country of Honduras. 1931, José Antonio Velásquez married Raquel Maradiaga, who bore him six children: Jose Antonio, Julio Cesar Tulio Enrique, Aída Raquel, Queen Virginia and Ruth Elia.
After the death of his parents, Caridad Velásquez abandoned and moved to the northern coast of Honduras in search of better living conditions, that once offered the banana companies.
Subsequently, Velasquez became a barber, played alternately work with the telegraph. It was precisely this trade, which led to Velasquez as an employee to move to San Antonio de Oriente, a small place, located about 30 kilometers from Tegucigalpa, capital of Honduras.
Velasquez came to love so much to this town, so this became the inspiration for most of his works. Furthermore, Velásquez was mayor of the town into three periods.
In turn, José Antonio Velasquez was considered, the first American primitive painter. At the invitation of the Pan American Union Velásquez exhibited his works in 1954 in Washington. Then he was invited to Costa Rica by President Jose Figueres in 1971.
After that the fame of Velasquez was expanding, so that his works were also displayed in a number of countries in the world. Among these are: Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, Holland, Australia, China, Japan, the Soviet Union, Venezuela, Mexico and many others.
José Antonio Velásquez died on February 14, 1983, leaving an incomplete picture.
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