Baldomero Alejos was born on February 27, 1902 in Amaupata, a village of Santiago de Chocorvos in the department of Huancavelica, Peru. Coming from a family of farmers and shepherds, Luisa Bautista and Alberto Alejos had five sons: Tomas Teodosio, Facundo, Natividad, Nazario ,Modesta and Baldomero, the youngest.

Orphaned at the age of six, the young Baldomero was sent to Palpa Ica, with his brother Nazario, and put to work treading grapes for the Hacienda Cabildo owned by the Picasso family. He attended primary and secondary schools, although there is no record of him finishing secondary school.

After completing primary school during the second decade of the 20th century, Baldomero began working as an assistant in the photo studio of Goyzueta Diego, an artist and photographer from Lima. Some time later, he opened his first studio in Jirón Sebastián Barranca in the Victoria district of Lima and afterwards he moved to Barranco.

The inauguration in 1924 of the Mejorada road that linked Lima and Ayacucho, and the lack of photographers in Huamanga Province motivated Baldomero to settle permanently in Ayacucho. His first photographic studio was located in the Jirón 2 de Mayo. From there the studio moved to the Barrio Cinco Esquinas and from there to Jirón 28 de Julio in front of the Commissioner. Years later he moved the studio to the front of the Iglesia de la Compañía, also on Jirón 28 de Julio. The studio’s final location was in the Jirón Bellido, near the family home.

Baldomero met Mary Julia Najarro Calderon, better kniown as “Mama Rita” while photographing a group of young girls. Soon, they were married and had five children, three of whom survive: Gotardo, Walter and Nelly. He had other children, Olga, Alberto, María Jesús and Guillermina.

Baldomero Alejo’s life was devoted entirely to his work. He had a limited social life and was not interested in politics or civic activities. Always employing natural light, he did his photography during the day and in the evenings he would work on the negatives and prints . In 1976, Baldomero Alejos became the victim of a painful illness. He died in Lima and was buried in the El Angel Cemetery.

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