Gonzalo García
Statement
My artistic work as a painter is intimately related to my experience as a homosexual man and how my immediate context as a Mexican influences this experience. That is why for more than a half decade, I have been studying and reviewing Mexican films and novels from past decades, to thread them (within my work) with my current concerns.
My early paintings and drawings are more explicitly erotic because they focus exclusively on human flesh and depict the vulnerability of self-portraiture through the lens of intimacy and sex. Over time, I began to paint my friends in similar states, harnessing mystical and seductive realism in the works to evoke the physicality of each subject and the overall sense of desire. While these self-portraits allowed me to explore, and ultimately discover, who I was as a gay male artist, lately I have become more interested in working more metaphorically and bringing to life more subdued sexual motifs such as flowers with varied textures and colors, echoing the human body, and allowing the viewer to draw their conclusions.
Resume
Puebla, Mexico, 1985.
He studied Visual Arts at the Instituto Allende University, in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato. His most recent work addresses different social and historical issues in Mexico based on novels written in the 40s and movies from the 70s and 80s of Mexico. He has had 12 individual exhibitions in Mexico and more than 20 collective exhibitions at various museums in Querétaro, Monterrey, Guadalajara, Sweden, Spain, and recently in New York and California. In 2013 he had an art residency at the Swedish Watercolor Museum, near the city of Gothenburg, where he obtained the Jóvenes Creadores FONCA Scholarship for the first time, in the discipline of painting. Likewise, he has been selected in several biennials throughout his career, such as the last XVII Rufino Tamayo Biennial of 2016-2017 and the José y Tomás Chávez Morado Biennial of 2018, where he obtained an honorable mention, as well as the last VI Pedro Coronel Biennial of Zacatecas.
In 2018 he obtained the Jóvenes Creadores FONCA Scholarship for the second time in the discipline of painting. In the same year, he was selected in the “Julio Castillo” Biennial of painting in the city of Querétaro, exhibited at the Libertad Gallery, as well as in a pop-up show of contemporary Mexican painting in Los Angeles, California, with the Emilia Cohen Gallery. In 2021 he had the support of the Jóvenes Creadores FONCA Scholarship for the third time, in the discipline of painting, in addition to an honorary mention in the 4th Edition of the Lumen Biennial, “Panorama” still exhibited at the beginning of 2022 at the Museo de la Ciudad, in Mexico City. At the end of 2022, he was the second-place winner at the VI Biennial of Painting J. A. Monrroy in the category of consolidated artists, the same year he received the support of the Sistema Nacional de Creadores de Arte (SNCA), in the discipline of painting.
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FORMAL EDUCATION
2008
Bachelor of Visual Arts, Instituto Allende University. San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato. Mexico.
INDIVIDUAL EXHIBITIONS AND PRESENTATIONS
2024:
-Art Fair N.A.D.A. next to CAM Galería Booth 305 , Miami, EE.UU..
2023:
-La musa enferma. Curated by Mara Sepulveda at Arte Actual Mexicano Gallery, Monterrey, Mexico.
-FLESH. Curated by Charles Moore at CAM Galería, Mexico City, Mexico.
2022
-Refugios Suaves at LOOT Gallery, Mexico City, Mexico.
2021
-Mirando al techo. An exhibition next to the artist Tania Quezada, at the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Querétaro, Queretaro, Mexico.
2020
-Incendios. At Arte Actual Mexicano Gallery, Monterrey, Mexico.
2018
-País de ofrendas. At Libertad de Querétaro Gallery, Querétaro, Mexico.
2017
-Retratos al poder. At Arte Actual Mexicano Gallery, Monterrey, Mexico.
2016
-Lo peor de nosotros. An exhibition next to the artist Tania Quezada, at Libertad de Querétaro Gallery, Queretaro, Mexico.
2014
-ROTO. At the Museo de la Ciudad de Querétaro, Queretaro, Mexico.
2011
-Entre flores y otros amores. At Arte Actual Mexicano Gallery, Monterrey, Mexico.
2010
-De penetraciones y otras complicaciones. At the Museo de la Ciudad de Querétaro, Queretaro, Mexico.
2009
-Cerdo yo: el mundo rosa del consumo. At Galeria Universitaria Hermenegildo Bustos, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.
COLLECTIVE EXHIBITIONS
2024:
-Art Fair Zona Maco next to CAM Galería Booth EJ21 , Mexico City, Mexico.
2023:
-Art Fair Obertura Carabanchel with HBTS Art Projects, Madrid, Spain.
-Art Fair Positions next to CAM Galería Booth B14, Berlin, Germany.
-Pijamada 001. by TRÁMITE Buro de Coleccionistas next to Proyecto CAIMÁN Gallery, Guadalajara, Mexico.
2021:
-Panorama. At La Nao Gallery, project room “Salón_N”, Mexico City, Mexico.
2020:
-Casa Pixan. Multidisciplinary project at Casa Pixan, Mexico City, Mexico.
2019:
-Southern Exposure: Shining Lights (Contemporary Art from Mexico). At Castelli Art Space & Emilia Cohen Gallery, Los Angeles, California.
-Nueva piel para una vieja ceremonia. At Karen Huber Gallery, Mexico City, Mexico.
-Flores pequeñas agrietan el concreto. At espacio La Litho, Oaxaca, Mexico.
-Art Fair FAIN, Escandón space, Mexico City, Mexico.
-Tu y yo somos uno mismo (uh oh, uh oh). At Veinte veinte, Building Vizcaya, Mexico City, Mexico.
-Alquimia de lo Inefable. At Centro Cultural Mexiquense Bicentenario, Edo. de Mex, Mexico.
-Vergüenza o paz. At Nueve Arte Urbano in Casa Cortesana, Querétaro, Mexico.
2018:
-Secret gay box. (Spring/Break Art Show) 4 Times Square, NY, invitated by curator and art adviser John Wolf, next to the Art Fair Armory Week.
-Segundo encuentro de Arte Figurativo. At Museo de Arte Raúl Anguiano (MURA), Guadalajara, Mexico.
2017:
-DISTOPÍA. At Museo de Historia y Arte El palacio de los Gurza, Durango, Mexico.
2016:
-Nuevas narrativas: exposición colectiva de pintura. At Galería Municipal de Querétaro, Mexico.
-Desaparecidos. At Balneario Gallery, Querétaro, Mexico.
2015:
-Colección Milenio: Visto por el Arte (1a edición), Madrid, Spain.
-Desaparecidos. At Balneario Gallery, Querétaro, Mexico.
2014:
-Alegorías Contemporáneas. At Museo de Arte de Querétaro, Mexico.
-Cartografías constatativas. At Galería Municipal de Querétaro, Mexico.
2013:
-The shape of happiness to come. At Tidaholms Konsthall Museum, Skarhamn, Suecia.
CURATORIAL PROJECTS
2022 & 2021:
-Art Fair Clavo movimiento Ed. 2, 3 and 4, at Casa Versalles and different locations in Mexico City next to the project La Guerrera.
2021:
-Cofounder of La Guerra Gallery at Mexico City, focus on young painting artists of Mexico.
2016:
-Nuevas narrativas. Collective exhibition of painting curated by Gonzalo García at Galería Municipal de Querétaro, Mexico.
2015:
-Chief curator and artist of the mural project at Museo de los Conspiradores de Querétaro, with a team of 10 artist that created 300 m2 of mural.
PUBLICATIONS
2023:
-Catalogue “Figurativas 2023”, from MEAM Museum, Barcelona, Spain.
-Monopol Magazine “Positions Berlin Art Fair” Berlin, Germany.
2022:
-Catalogue of the VI Bienal Nacional de Pintura, J.A. Monrroy, at the category of established artists, Guadalajara, Mexico.
2021:
-Catalogue of the 4a. Edition of Bienal Lumen, “Parámetro”, Museo de la Ciudad de México, Mexico City, Mexico.
2019:
-Arte vivo. At Canal 14, interview for National TV and YouTube.
2018:
-Catalogue of the 2º Premio Centro-Occidente de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado “José y Tomás Chávez Morado”, Centro de las artes de Guanajuato, Guanajuato, Mexico.
-Catalogue of the I Bienal de Pintura Pedro Coronel, at the Museo Pedro Coronel, Zacatecas, Mexico.
2017:
-Catalogue of the XVII Bienal Rufino Tamayo, Museo Tamayo, Mexico City, Mexico.
2016:
-Catalogue of the exhibition “Nuevas narrativas”, Galería Municipal de Querétaro, Queretaro, Mexico.
-Plataforma Cultural. Plataforma Newspaper , artitle “Retratos al poder”. Monterrey, Mexico.
2012:
-Catalogue of the exhibition “Los nuevos grandes maestros de la pintura, clásicos contemporáneos”, Collective exhibition, Arte Actual Mexicano Gallery, Monterrey, Mexico.
-Newspaper “ECOS”, Monterrey, Mexico, artitle “Los nuevos grandes maestros de la pintura, clásicos contemporáneos”.
-“aQROpolis”, newspaper of Queretaro, talking about the exhibition “ROTO” at the Museo de la ciudad de Qro, Queretaro, Mexico.
2012:
-El Milenio visto por el arte. At Milenio Newspaper.
2008:
-Catalogue of the I Bienal de Pintura Pedro Coronel, at the Museo Pedro Coronel, Zacatecas, Mexico.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
2023:
-Beca del Sistema Nacional de Creadores, Mexico.
2022:
-Winner of the second place at the VI Bienal Nacional de Pintura, J.A. Monrroy, in the category of established artist, Guadalajara, Mexico.
-Honor mention at the Premio Nacional de pintura Ángel Zárraga, Durango, Mexico.
2021:
Honor mention at the 4a. Edition of the Bienal Lumen, “Parámetro”, Museo de la Cd., Mexico City, Mexico.
2021:
-Winner of the Beca de Jóvenes creadores FONCA, in painting.
2019:
-Art Residency Cobertizo, Jilotepec, Edo. de Mexico, Mexico.
2018:
-Honor mention at the 2º Premio Centro-Occidente de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado “José y Tomás Chávez Morado”, Centro de las artes de Guanajuato, Guanajuato, Mexico.
-Winner of the Beca de Jóvenes creadores FONCA, in painting.
2017:
-XVII Bienal Rufino Tamayo, Museo Contemporáneo de Oaxaca, Oax, y Museo Tamayo, Mexico City, Mexico.
2016:
-Selected artist at the V Bienal de Pintura Pedro Coronel, Museo Pedro Coronel, Zacatecas, Zac.
2013
-Art Residency at the Nordiska Akvarell Musset, Skärhamn, Suecia.
-Winner of the Beca de Jóvenes creadores FONCA, in painting.
2008:
-I Bienal de Pintura Pedro Coronel, Museo Pedro Coronel, Zacatecas, Mexico.
COLLECTIONS
-Universidad de Guadalajara, acquisition prize at the VI Bienal Nacional de Pintura, J.A. Monrroy, in the category of established artists, Guadalajara, Jal.
-Milenio visto por el Arte first edition next to artist like Arturo Rivera and Daniel Lezama.
-Vita Raykhman
-Matthew Herberlein
-Jairo Hoyos
-Alejandro Soto
-Gerardo Muñoz