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Carlos Quinto

The artistry of Carlos Quinto has been featured in Celebrated Living magazine.

Born on August 26, 1952, Carlos Quinto traces the beginnings of his craft back to 1975 when he started engraving mate gourds at his friend's workshop. Since then, Quinto dedicates most of his time to this traditional Peruvian art form. He says this activity fills him with great pride.

Quinto is moved by a desire to innovate and has won several awards for his ingenious products, including second place for a wallet made from a gourd, and third place for a lamp, also gourd.

He has participated in various national and state exhibitions and fairs, where he has found great acceptance for his original inventiveness. His products are in great demand throughout Peru and abroad.

Once Quinto has selected the right gourd, he sets to work engraving fantastic compositions with a burin, a borer and electric burners.

"Mate burilado (engraved gourd) is an art form with a cultural expression. This is one of the many legacies our predecessors inherited us. We depict daily experiences, customs and pre-Hispanic iconography. Each mate gourd carries a message. In addition, what I do is try to bring back their functional purpose – like they used to have in the past."