Fernando Llort Choussy

Llort visited two seminaries, one in La Ceja a small town in Medellin, Colombia, another Toulouse, France, but eventually decided against priesthood, as his calling and passion for art was much stronger. He is known for teaching the citizens of the small town of La Palma, Chalatenango, how to make a living through art. His style is colorful and often childlike; it can be compared to that of Joan Miró and in some instances to that of Pablo Picasso.

Fernando Llort Choussy studied at Louisiana State University, Liceo Salvadoreño and University of El Salvador. The recorded working language is Spanish. The field of work recorded is painting, handicraft and music. Distinctions recorded are Premio Nacional de Cultura, Orden al Mérito 5 de Noviembre 1811, Próceres de la Independencia Patria, Hijo Meritísimo o Hija Meritisima de El Salvador and Order of the Star of Italian Solidarity.

Fernando Llort was born in San Salvador, El Salvador, on 7 April 1949 to Baltasar Llort and Victoria Choussy. Llort was always creating from a young age, whether it was ceramics with his master César Sermeño, or using musicality as a means of expression, Llort was not shy of exploring many artistic practices. In 1973 Fernando Llort married Estela Chacón in La Palma, Chalatenango where they would live and raise their family from 1973 to 1979, until they moved to San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador during the beginning of the Civil War (1979-1992). Llort and Cachón had three children: Juan Pablo, a chemical engineer; Angel Fernando, a musician; and Maria Jose who manages much of Fernando Llort's business. Fernando Llort died on 10 August 2018.

Fernando Llort started his post secondary education at the University of El Salvador in the early 1960s where he studied architecture, but he dropped out for unknown reasons. He continued to explore his interests of spirituality in 1966 when Llort traveled to Medellin, Colombia where he studied religion at the seminary in La Ceja. This religious bent can be seen in the symbols present throughout his work—one can almost always see a church, a dove or an all-seeing eye. Afterwards, Llort spent the next three years studying in France at the University of Toulouse, graduating with a Bachelors of Philosophy, and then at the Université catholique de Louvain in Belgium, where he'd eventually earn his degree in theology. During his time in Europe, Llort painted in his free time, which led to his first exhibition of works in France. Llort spent many years away from his home country in his pursuit of education. During Llort's time abroad, he felt a disconnect from his culture and would rekindle it in his exhibition in France, where inspiration of Mayan culture influenced Llort's work to connect themes of identity to relate to his Latin American heritage. Finishing his time in Europe, Llort traveled to study in the United States at the Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where he would start taking formal art courses, along with modern architecture and English classes. Llort was not satisfied with the rigidity of North American education, as it restricted his creativity. Experiencing discrimination, materialism and other values of American society that Llort was not fond of, he left America in 1971, and returned to El Salvador.

Fernando Llort and a few other of his friends began to explore music inspired by the American Hippie movement of the 1960s upon his return to El Salvador. They would go on to form a band called La Banda del Sol (The Sun Band). During their time together, they would create and compose songs heavily influenced by religion and spirituality. These themes would eventually translate in the estilo Palmeño (Palmeño style), a style Llort created himself. To escape instability, in 1971 he and other young artists moved to the town of La Palma in the northern region of El Salvador, close to the border with Honduras. La Palma was a small, low-income town with high crime rates, and low employment at the time of Llort's arrival. The simple life he lived in the mountains was a refuge from what was happening throughout the rest of the country. Llort's assimilation into the village life and lush natural environment greatly influenced his art. Once, while touring the canals, Llort noticed a child rubbing a copinol tree seed against the ground to reveal a white surface, framed by the brown sides of the outer casing of the seed. This would become a staple in La Palma's and Llort's history, as it incorporated the main essence of estilo Palmeño; the natural surface provided by the land, and folk art style created by Llort.