Monky (born Pedro Tolomeo Rojas Meza, 1962 and also referred to as Pedro Tolodeo) is a self-taught Peruvian graphic artist and pioneer of the chicha poster movement. His street posters, printed in bright fluorescent inks and pasted on walls across Lima, are associated with the chicha music genre. His visual style, developed during the 1970s and 1980s using hand-drawn lettering and screen printing, defined the chicha poster aesthetic.
Monky was born in 1962 in San Lorenzo, a district in Jauja in the JunÃÂn Region to a farming family. His early design work was in a single color only. He moved to Lima in 1980 with the intention of studying to become a mechanic, and worked as a mechanic, waiter, combi fare collector, cook, and day laborer.
In Lima, he continued to develop his design practice, creating murals, flyers, and various forms of advertising. In 1978, he created his first posters using stencils and spray paint. In 1983, Monky began working with poster maker Juan Tenicela, creating serigraphs using burned mesh screens and clothing dyes.
After a year of working with Tenicela, Monky established his own workshop. His first major clients were chicha musicians Chacalón and Tongo, who hired him to create posters for their concerts. His work subsequently began to spread throughout Peru.
Monky has also makes large stage banners, painting directly onto the cloth itself instead of using an intermediate paper. Despite the introduction of laser-printing technology that enables printing large-scale work and has largely replaced manual creation in the industry, Monky creates his work by hand.
He has created posters, album covers, and logos for prominent chicha musicians, including , , Chacalón, Los Destellos, Génesis, , , , Los Shapis, Tongo, and .
, Monky continues to create posters to promote cumbia concerts, and is supported by his nephew in his Lima studio to meet international demand.
Monky's art is influenced by the landscapes, sculpture, and costumes of the Huancayo region, including the 20 January festival in his hometown, particularly the colorful costumes of chonguinos dancers and traditional clothing. His grandmother dyed clothing with fluorescent pigments in the late 1960s, which she called "colores escandalosos" ("scandalous colors").
Monky's early work used a color palette of blue, red, yellow, and orange against a black background. In the late 1980s, Monky discovered fluorescent pigments in latex form at a hardware store and had the Diamanti company prepare fluorescent pigments specifically for serigraphy. His technique involves hand drawing, stenciling according to color, and serial printing of 100 copies per mesh screen. He works freehand without using models or computers.
His work has influenced artists such as Nación Chicha, Feliciano Mallqui, Ruta Mare, Carga Máxima, and Elliot Urcuhuaranga.
Monky noted that his work has been more appreciated outside of Peru than within, stating that, "in other countries we have love and support; they let us do the work we do on the walls."