Alonso Gaona (Gaona Lopera Alonso) is a writer, painter, and human rights activist born on October 15, 1967, in Calarcá, Colombia. His life reads like a journey from the depths of the Colombian jungle to the bright theaters of European culture, a path marked by a persistent commitment to human dignity and the power of art to speak where words alone cannot.
A teenage sojourn through Colombia’s wild interior shaped Gaona’s early sensibilities, a period that later informed his prose and paintings. At 16, he set off for New York, a bold pilgrimage that would foreshadow a career defined by crossing borders—geographic, linguistic, and moral. He has a penchant for simple prose that aims to illuminate complex truths about exile, longing, and resilience.
Literary milestones punctuate Gaona’s career. In 1998, he published El Adios de la tierra Amada (Farewell of the Beloved Land), a novel that has since traveled beyond its origins to become a universal song about migrants’ journeys, oscillating between laughter and tears. The work appeared in Seville two decades after its initial publication, underscoring its enduring relevance.
In 2012, Gaona published El Flaco y la Ministra (Skinny and Madame Minister), a contemporary masterpiece that intertwines the mechanical strangulation of the human spirit with loneliness, ultimately saved by a dog—the beloved, faithful presence that can pierce isolation’s veil.
Gaona expanded into fantasy with The Voice Of My Father And The 7 Curses Of The Mountain, the saga that began in 2022. This novel pits author and character against each other in an untold story about Angus, a cast-out hell’s angel who lands among six spinster sisters, merging myth and personal reckoning in a testament to storytelling’s transformative power.
Gaona’s activism has long informed his art. In 2004, amid coalition bombs over Iraq, he presented one of his most controversial works, Death of the UN, at the Colombian consulate in New York. The piece demanded accountability for violations of international humanitarian law and highlighted the fragility of humanitarian protection in times of war. His commitment to indigenous communities—tempered by years of cultural management work in Caloto, Cauca—illustrates how art and advocacy can converge to defend marginalized voices.
Expulsion from Colombia in 2012 by paramilitary forces led Gaona to exile in the United Kingdom, a chapter that strengthened his resolve and broadened his international perspective. His art remains centered on luminous palettes and a bold curiosity about human relations, striving to reveal the secrets of the universe through color and form. His canvases—bright, varied, and deeply human—reflect both happiness and longing, and they invite viewers to engage in dialogue about peace, justice, and the human condition.
Gaona’s international outlook is complemented by a grounded love for Ukraine. He has found personal affinity and solidarity with the Ukrainian people, condemning aggression while celebrating the country’s resilience on the canva The Right to live in Peace. “Ukraine is like a garden—beautiful, like a precious stone. But the most important and valuable thing here is the people. Fantastic people. That is the real treasure,” Gaona recently shared, underscoring a belief in art and humanity as instruments of reconciliation and hope.
A notable recent development is Gaona’s ongoing work on a large canvas in Bucha, Ukraine, a city that bore witness to civilian suffering during the broader conflict. This painting, The Right to live in Peace, embodies his conviction that art can bear witness to atrocity, honor victims, and stimulate international discourse about accountability and peace.
Instagram presence and public statements reveal a thinker who remains committed to principled positions in the face of ongoing military conflicts and civilian casualties worldwide. Gaona’s work—whether textual or visual—seeks not only to protest but to illuminate interpersonal relationships within society and to open the curtain on the universe for those around him.
In a world fraught with turmoil, Alonso Gaona’s art and writing offer a chorus of empathy, courage, and hope. His intercultural journeys—through Colombia, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Ukraine—testify to the unyielding belief that art can bridge divides, bear witness to suffering, and help steer humanity toward peace.
Photo credits: The photograph is from the artist’s archive
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