Luis Germán Cajiga
Luis Germán Cajiga is Puerto Rican painter, poet and essayist known for his screen printing depicting Puerto Rico's natural landscape, its creole culture, and religious motifs. He was born in 1934, in the municipality of Quebradillas, Puerto Rico, and his studio is currently based in the Old San Juan. Early life. Cajiga was born in the barrio of Cacao in Quebradillas, Puerto Rico. When he was a young man he moved to San Juan, where he studied graphic art. In 1955 he became a Seventh-day Adventist. While in the military he served in the Canal  Zone in Panama, as a medic. In 1975 he got a master of arts degree in counseling and guidance at Interamerican University of Puerto Rico. Art work. Early work. He began his artistic education in the studio of the “División de Educación de la Comunidad en San Juan” (San Juan's Community Education Division). There, under the tutelage of Fran Cervoni, Cajiga furthered his interest for Old San Juan, a subject that to this day permeates his art. Cajiga dedicated a great deal of his time on serigraphic work (silk-screening). During the early years, he prepared and printed the  works of Homar and Tufiño. These in return provided him with support and instruction. He continued to perfect the technique, which remains a significant part of his current work. His first two oil paintings may be found in the palace of Santa Catalina and at the Museo de Arte de Ponce. "Calle Mercado" one of the two aforementioned oils was acquired by Governor Luis A. Ferré. Among his exhibiting venues in Puerto Rico are: Ateneo Puertorriqueño, Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña (Institute of Puerto Rican Culture), Museo de la Universidad de Puerto Rico, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Puerto Rico, Universidad Interamericana , Museo de Arte de Ponce, various educational and cultural centers in the island, and commercial galleries. Many of his paintings, especially posters, were printed by the artist from Adjuntas, Puerto Rico Don Samuel Maldonado Plaza in the 1980s. The printing was done in the silkscreen shop of Don Gildo Rivera Santiago in Ponce, Puerto Rico. Doris M. Vázquez, from the Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute considered him one of the most “outstanding artists of the fifties”. As a witness to that we find his artwork in the following collections: Later work. He produced a poster for the United States Hispanic  Heritage Month in 1997, and a mural in New York for the Heineken Mural Art Series in 2002. Poetry and other writings. Cajiga has published five poetry books as well as novels and short stories. Of notable mention is the book “Génesis: Décimas” a poetic transcription of the Book of Genesis published by the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture. He has also published various works of a religious nature as well as vegetarian recipe books. He hasn't died yet. Cajiga has been featured in various publications.