Eleazar Sanchez
An intimist and visionary artist, his artistic expression aims to portray the transfiguration of material and spiritual life. Eleazar with his three different styles (surrealistic, sacred and abstract) reflects through episodes of his life while leaving an open window of interpretation for those who unconsciously seek to see themselves in his work.
His artistic training is a combination of classical painting techniques as well as personal experimentation.
As Eleazar’s work continues to get notoriety in Italy and Europe, it is his ability to create emotions on the viewer through painting that makes his style transcend language. His unremitting desire to create result in a complex combination of personal, provocative, and spiritual subjects. Through his paintings, Eleazar expresses his cultural identity in parallel with his own sense of self realization in a singular voice that reconciles his inner passions with his illusionistic vision as an artist.
Eleazar Sanchez's formal art training is a combination of classical painting techniques with personal experimentation. In 1997, he graduates with a Professorate in Arts from the “Centro Nacional de Artes”, in El Salvador. He begins his artistic journey around Europe, gaining a deeper understanding of social and cultural symbolism, Eleazar is confronted with a dynamic and chaotic realities, which inspires him to further experiment with new expressive techniques to give life to images of oneiric restlessness that merge with the virtuous illusion of the engulfing society. In 2002, his journey takes him to Italy in search for new artistic enlightenment; it is in Sicily that he is captivated by the majestic yet indolent allure of the land. Eleazar continues to build on new artistic and visual challenges, which in turn lead him to win different prizes and become recognized as a surrealist voice. In 2004, Eleazar finds a dialogue between painting and theater, he is contracted as a scenographer, to design, paint, and oversee the construction and decoration of scenographic installations that are commissioned by both, public and private organizations. Eleazar’s reputation as a surrealist continues to take momentum in Italy and is awarded with a Honorary Degree in “Classe di Pittura” by the “Accademia Internazionale Città di Roma”. The Degree is organized by the Embassy of El Salvador in Rome in collaboration with the Istituro Italo-Latinoamericano of Rome (IILA) and the Accademia Internazionale, Città di Roma, as a way to recognize Eleazar’s work in the collective exhibition “El Salvador Oggi”, which showcases Salvadoran culture abroad. In 2008, Eleazar joins the Cultural Association L'Incontro of Camporeale. There, Eleazar becomes greatly interested in Sicilian society and begins to contribute as chronicle cartoonist. Soon after, Eleazar is a voice in the Sicilian political climate and his political cartoons are one of the main attractions in the newspaper “L’Incontro". As a result, his surrealistic style becomes the perfect bridge between religion, art, and the people. Namely, one of Eleazar’s first sacred artworks, a rendition of the Madonna del Phileremo. That same year, a ceremony is offered in honor of Eleazar, in which he is given the Distinction of Honor by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of El Salvador, for internationally disseminating Salvadoran culture through painting. During the ceremony, Eleazar donates two works of Our Lady "Virgen de la Paz" to the Salvadoran Embassies before the Holy See and the Italian Republic, further confirming Eleazar as a strong voice in sacred-contemporary art. In 2014, Eleazar takes one of the most important religious commissions in his career. An altar piece for the “Basilica di Santo Stefano Maggiore” in Milan. The work is inaugurated on May 23, 2015 on the occasion of the Beatification of the now Saint, the Martyr Oscar Romero, to whom the painting is dedicated for his martyrdom during the Salvadoran Civil War in 1980. That same year, Eleazar is invited by the Salvadoran Embassy to be part of the delegation of representation for the Audience with the Holy Father Pope Francis in thanks for the altar piece. During the ceremony, Eleazar, via the Consular Representative, presets a unique portrait he painted of Blessed Bishop Romero to His Holiness Pope Francis. The portrait is now part of the Vatican’s private collection. In 2016, Eleazar takes part in an exhibition in the Diocesan Museum of Piazza Armerina (Sicily), in which a series of his works are showcased for six months, including a second portrait of Romero d’America, a reinterpretation of the work donated to the Holy Father Pope Francis were he’s given another honorary degree in Painting. Such exposure helps Eleazar gain greater notoriety, thus leading to sponsorships in other exhibitions across Italy and Europe. Consequently, Eleazar is invited to show his work at a art group show in Berlin, and participates in group shows like La Via degli Artisti where his work is displayed for six consecutive months. In 2017, Eleazar continues to partake in solo and group exhibitions that showcase his surrealistic paintings as well as his cultural and sacred works across Italy and the South of France. With a never ending thirst for growth and artistic development, his creative voice continues to gain momentum through an eclectic array of styles that also encompass contemporary art, portraiture, and landscapes. Most recently, Eleazar’s interest extend beyond the canvas, in fact in 2017 he collaborates on a project that merges food and art. The Saley Art - Bistro Gallery in Nice, France, had exhibit his work while also kindling patrons with dishes inspired by Eleazar’s paintings for the year 2017.
As Eleazar’s work continues to receive notoriety in Italy and the rest of Europe, it is his ability to create emotions through painting that makes his style transcend language. His unremitting desire to create, results in works with a complex combination of personal, provocative, and spiritual subjects. Through his paintings, Eleazar expresses his cultural identity in parallel with his own sense of self realization in a singular voice that reconciles his inner passions with his illusionistic vision as an artist. His work is now present in private and public collections in many different cities between Italy and Europe. In June 2020 a commission comes from the Parrocchia of San Salvatore in the town of Roccamena, Sicily, a religious piece retracting The “Madonna del Conforto” to be exposed at the church after been consecrated by the ArchBishop of Monreale. In August of the same year another commission from the Basilica of San Sebastiano for a portrait of the Martyr Pino Puglisi for the Reliquary, of the same Martyr at the Basilica in Acireale. In January 2024, he begins with his extraordinary demonstration of artistic generosity. In fact, Eleazar creates and donates to the Church of Jesusù e Maria, a masterpiece depicting San Mauro Abate, which is consecrated by H.E.R. mgr. Antonio Raspanti during the solemn Pontifical, on the occasion of the celebrations in honor of San Mauro Abate at the same Church in Acireale. In June of that year, he's called to participate in an international group exhibition, titled "Art Without Borders Italy-Georgia", at the Georgian Artistic Union Gallery, in Tblisi, Georgia. Later that month, Eleazar's desire to keep experimenting and evolving as an artist, takes him to move to New York and expand his artistic experience and research.