Juan Pablo Zapata Cornejo was born on August 23, 1973 in Arequipa, Peru. As a child, he liked watching movies and pictures of animals, but he never thought that years later he would be able to draw and paint them. A few years later, his dreams came true. When he was nine years old, he painted his first artwork and
named it "Aguila Real" (Royal Eagle). Although it was a rough work, it was the first of a series to come. He still keeps this very first artwork.

After finishing school and not having painted for a long time, Juan Pablo traveled to Paracas Island (in the Pacific). After that, he decided to study Graphic Design at Thomas Jefferson Institute in Arequipa. During this time, he became interested in illustration and painting wildlife which years later provided him opportunities for his career in illustration.  


Aguila Real

  After graduating as a graphic designer, he made illustration
his career, painting with colored pencils and an airbrush. He then started exhibiting his artwork in
different places. His first presentation, but not the least important, was at the American Ambassador's home
in Lima along with famous artists from Peru and other countries such as Fernando de Szyszlo and Victor Delfin among others.

With the desire of improving his art, this illustrator desires to attain the greatest detail possible in each one of his illustrations trying to achieve the greatest realism. To achieve
this, he has concentrated on the skin, hair, fur, etc., and in a very precise way on the eyes of
animals. And as someone told him in a presentation, "Your works seem to be looking at us." Now he is a teacher of Illustration at Thomas Jefferson Institute.

Juan Pablo tells us "We must take care of endangered species, they do not seem to be important for many. Daily problems make us forget the wonders of our world, a world that in spite of the abuse it suffers, is still beautiful. We, the artists, should support the wildlife conservation through our illustrations".

Organitations membership:

2004 - WORLDWIDE NATURE ARTISTS GROUP
(www.natureartists.com) Welcome to the Web's premier source for collectors of world-class nature art and wildlife art by many of the worlds' leading nature and wildlife artists. The
Worldwide Nature Artists' Group (WNAG) is an exclusive Group of artists that have created a forum for collectors to acquire original and limited edition artwork directly from the artists.

2003 - SOCIETY OF ANIMAL ARTISTS ( S.A.A ) in United States. (www.societyofanimalartists.com ) The Society of Animal Artists is an association of animal and wildlife painters and sculptors. Founded in 1960, the Society is devoted to promoting excellence in the portrayal of the creatures sharing our planet, and to the education of the public through its informative art seminars, lectures and teaching demonstrations. Some of the finest animal artists from the United States, Canada, Europe, Africa, Japan, and Australia are represented in the Society's membership. Over the past 40 years the work
created by these artists has established new standards of artistic excellence and respect, helping animal and wildlife art to achieve a place of honor in the field of fine art.

2002 - THE WILDLIFE ART SOCIETY ( T.W.A.S ) in England. (www.thewildlifeartsociety.co.uk) The Wildlife Art Society was founded in 1992 with the purpose of promoting a greater appreciation of the wildlife art genre, the animals, plants and wild places which provide the stimulus and inspiration for all such work. The Society acts as a forum for wildlife artists, providing opportunities for them to share their common interests and raise their individual profiles through Society exhibitions and other events. The Society also focuses members' attention on the activities in the national and international wildlife art arena.

2002 - ASSOCIACIO PROFESSIONAL D'IL LUSTRADORS DE
VALENCIA ( A.P.I.V ) in Spain. (www.apiv.com)

Contact Juan at:
JUAN PABLO ZAPATA CORNEJO
QUEZADA 118 DPTO. 2
YANAHUARA AREQUIPA - PERU
Telephone: 51 ( 54 ) - 9102529
51 ( 1 ) - 91102982
51 ( 1 ) - 97951212

e-mail Juan at: artezapata@yahoo.es