Alejandro Rivera
Current exhibition is on view in St. Helena March 12 - April 20
Mexican artist Alejandro Rivera creates richly layered allegories that speak to contemporary experience through the lens of history, philosophy, and symbolism. His work draws from a wide range of visual and intellectual sources. He looks at traditions of old master painting and drawing to ground his surreal visions and create a bridge between the tangible reality and the metaphysical.
In his most recent series featuring the Buddha head - Rivera believes in a compelling argument in which the Buddha is less a deity to be worshipped, and more a philosophical archetype; a personified state of cognitive and ethical ideals. While various traditions have historically layered the Buddha with mysticism and ritual, the core of the Buddhist project suggests that "Buddha" is a title, not a name; a potential, not a person. A part of his painting series stems from an aesthetical exploration of how the Buddha functions as a philosophical idea rather than a god like being. Suggesting the on going eternal reincarnation cycle, each painting features a different Buddha head immersed in its own particular circumstances, symbolizing the eternal search of enlightenment and self awareness.
“My paintings serve as an alchemical experiment where matter is transformed into dreams, spirit and myth” - Alejandro Rivera
Biography
A virtuosic painter, Mexican artist Alejandro Rivera weaves ingeniously complex allegories for contemporary times. His source material covers vast terrarin: A single series of paintings, for example, may include references as diverse as 14th Century religious art, early photography, Pop art, Greek mythology, economic theory and ancient history. All converge to form irresistible enigmas, careful collages that invite highly imaginitive readings. Analysing his pictures, we see that nearly every element in these immensely detailed works--a drop of water, a clock, a mirror, a stone wall, a shelf, a flower, a cup--figures into a greater narrative that speaks incisively about the human condition.
Energy and mastery pervade every inch of Rivera’s canvases. He does not shy from tackling the likes of Jorge Luis Borges’ dense philosophies or Velasquez’s brilliant legacy, while on a technical level he revels in performing ever more difficult feats. Problems of transparency and shifting textures are handled with characteristic grace. His work incorporates almost every imaginable surface--fabric, wood, glass, steel, grass, marble, tile, and even paint itself. A woman’s legs meld into a stone wall; her arm follows the contours of a landscape that becomes a cloth near the bottom of the painting.
As we have come to expect from Rivera, however, extravagant display couches deep meaning. “I tried to include as many different surfaces as possible in these paintings,” he says. “Some are man-made, and some are taken from nature, but all are related to human creation... As humans, we create things that reflect who we are and what we have achieved as a society. Most objects are thus a metaphor for our existence.”
More than anything else, perhaps, these are paintings about the nature of time--which is to say that they directly address the condition of being. Rivera’s work incessantly juxtaposes the old and the new: He might drape a fresh, beautiful, languid women in crumbling surroundings, or depict a pop-culture artifact alongside an ancient relic. Says Rivera: “The depiction of humans within their constructions, and the inevitable decay of both biological and inanimate entities, are constant in my work. The reappearance of an old master painting in an unlikely place gives it new meaning, and yet also questions our ability to produce anything truly original.” Indeed--an exploration of any Rivera painting reveals a world of cyclical time, where past informs present, future informs past, and metaphors span centuries.
Born
Mexico City, 1974
Education
1992-1993 Painting and drawing in the workshops of the El Nigromante Cultural Center (INBA), San Miguel de Allende. Gto.
1994 Engraving, El Nigromante Cultural Center. SMA, Gto,
Select Solo Exhibitions
2024 "Mind and Mater" Caldwellsnyder Gallery, Napa Valley Ca.
2023 "The Edification of Dreamscapes" Museo Virreinal of Zinacantepec. Estado de México. 2018 "Fragments " Caldwellsnyder Gallery, San Francisco, California.
"The architecture of Virtue" Bellas Artes Cultural Center (INBA), San Miguel de Allende, Gto. 2017 "Materias" Imagine Studio, San Miguel de Allende, Gto.
2012 “Flora Awaken” Campton Gallery, New York, NY.
2011 "Recent Work" Atelier Gallery, San Miguel de Allende.
2008 "Imaginary Natures" Atelier Gallery, San Miguel de Allende.
2007 "Recent Works" Caldwellsnyder Gallery, San Francisco, Ca.
2006 ''Origins and destination'' Campton Gallery, New York, NY.
2004 “Myths Mirrored”, Trajan Gallery, Carmel Ca.
“Paintings and drawings”, Museum of the city of Queretaro, Qro Mx.
2003 “Five Authors”, Engravings, drawings and plates, Museum of the City of Querétaro, Qro Mx.
2002 “Metaphors of surface”, Campton Gallery. New York, NY.
2001 “Sacred and Profane”, CaldwellSnyder Gallery, San Francisco, Ca.
2000 “Vestiges of the city of the immortals, drawings” Gallery of Contemporary Art. San Miguel de Allende, Gto.
1999 “The Divine Tragedy”, Kunsthaus Santa Fé. San Miguel de Allende, Gto. 1998 “Dreams and Enclosures”, Museum of the City of León, León, Gto.
“Selected paintings”, Casa de Sierra Nevada, San Miguel de Allende, Gto. 1997 “Rivera Leal, Paintings”, Instituto Allende, San Miguel de Allende, Gto.
Select Group Exhibitions
2018 "300 Years of European Landscapes", Casa Europa, San Miguel de Allende. 2016 "JA Monroy Biennial. CUCSUR. Autlán, Jalisco.
La Calaca, collective exhibition, Obraje forum, San Miguel de A. 2014 "The girl death" National Museum of Mexican Art. Chicago. Il
2013 "La Calaca Festival", Hotel Nena and Casa Europa (Traveling installation). San Miguel de Allende
2005 "Collections, Mexican art in Chicago private collections" Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum Chicago, Il.
2003 “20th Anniversary exhibit” Caldwellsnyder Gallery San Francisco Ca. / New York. 2001 “Introductions South”, San José Institute of Contemporary Art, San José, Ca.
“The Found Paradise (landscapes)” Museum of the City of Querétaro. Qro. 2000 “The New Mannerism” Museum of the City of Querétaro, Qro.
“Contemporary Figurative”, Casa Lam, México DF
“En Construcción, colección Kunsthaus Sta.Fé” (intinerante) University of Guanajuato, Gto and northern Mexico states.
1997 “Reflections on water” Instituto Allende, San Miguel de Allende, Gto “The art of drawing” Instituto Allende, San Miguel de Allende, Gto
1995 “Colosio” Palacio de Minas, México DF.
1992 “San Miguel para San Miguel”, El Nigromante Cultural Center, San Miguel de Allende, Gto.
Special Projects
2016 “La Muerte Negra”, Hotel Matilda, San Miguel de Allende, Installation Mural.
2013 “La dulce Muerte” Hotel Nena, San Miguel de Allende, Installation
2011 Baroque music Festival, San Miguel de Allende, 2011 Official poster image.
2006 The Borderlands of Culture: Américo Paredes and the Transnational
2006 Imaginary by Ramón Saldivar. Duke University Press, 2006 Book cover image.
Museum Collections
Museo de la Ciudad de Leon, Leon GTO, Mexico • Museo de Santiago de Queretaro, Queretaro, Mexico • National Museum of Mexican Art, Chicago, IL.
Press
PRESS
Selected Artworks
Born
Mexico City, 1974
Education
1992-1993 Painting and drawing in the workshops of the El Nigromante Cultural Center (INBA), San Miguel de Allende. Gto.
1994 Engraving, El Nigromante Cultural Center. SMA, Gto,
Select Solo Exhibitions
2024 "Mind and Mater" Caldwellsnyder Gallery, Napa Valley Ca.
2023 "The Edification of Dreamscapes" Museo Virreinal of Zinacantepec. Estado de México. 2018 "Fragments " Caldwellsnyder Gallery, San Francisco, California.
"The architecture of Virtue" Bellas Artes Cultural Center (INBA), San Miguel de Allende, Gto. 2017 "Materias" Imagine Studio, San Miguel de Allende, Gto.
2012 “Flora Awaken” Campton Gallery, New York, NY.
2011 "Recent Work" Atelier Gallery, San Miguel de Allende.
2008 "Imaginary Natures" Atelier Gallery, San Miguel de Allende.
2007 "Recent Works" Caldwellsnyder Gallery, San Francisco, Ca.
2006 ''Origins and destination'' Campton Gallery, New York, NY.
2004 “Myths Mirrored”, Trajan Gallery, Carmel Ca.
“Paintings and drawings”, Museum of the city of Queretaro, Qro Mx.
2003 “Five Authors”, Engravings, drawings and plates, Museum of the City of Querétaro, Qro Mx.
2002 “Metaphors of surface”, Campton Gallery. New York, NY.
2001 “Sacred and Profane”, CaldwellSnyder Gallery, San Francisco, Ca.
2000 “Vestiges of the city of the immortals, drawings” Gallery of Contemporary Art. San Miguel de Allende, Gto.
1999 “The Divine Tragedy”, Kunsthaus Santa Fé. San Miguel de Allende, Gto. 1998 “Dreams and Enclosures”, Museum of the City of León, León, Gto.
“Selected paintings”, Casa de Sierra Nevada, San Miguel de Allende, Gto. 1997 “Rivera Leal, Paintings”, Instituto Allende, San Miguel de Allende, Gto.
Select Group Exhibitions
2018 "300 Years of European Landscapes", Casa Europa, San Miguel de Allende. 2016 "JA Monroy Biennial. CUCSUR. Autlán, Jalisco.
La Calaca, collective exhibition, Obraje forum, San Miguel de A. 2014 "The girl death" National Museum of Mexican Art. Chicago. Il
2013 "La Calaca Festival", Hotel Nena and Casa Europa (Traveling installation). San Miguel de Allende
2005 "Collections, Mexican art in Chicago private collections" Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum Chicago, Il.
2003 “20th Anniversary exhibit” Caldwellsnyder Gallery San Francisco Ca. / New York. 2001 “Introductions South”, San José Institute of Contemporary Art, San José, Ca.
“The Found Paradise (landscapes)” Museum of the City of Querétaro. Qro. 2000 “The New Mannerism” Museum of the City of Querétaro, Qro.
“Contemporary Figurative”, Casa Lam, México DF
“En Construcción, colección Kunsthaus Sta.Fé” (intinerante) University of Guanajuato, Gto and northern Mexico states.
1997 “Reflections on water” Instituto Allende, San Miguel de Allende, Gto “The art of drawing” Instituto Allende, San Miguel de Allende, Gto
1995 “Colosio” Palacio de Minas, México DF.
1992 “San Miguel para San Miguel”, El Nigromante Cultural Center, San Miguel de Allende, Gto.
Special Projects
2016 “La Muerte Negra”, Hotel Matilda, San Miguel de Allende, Installation Mural.
2013 “La dulce Muerte” Hotel Nena, San Miguel de Allende, Installation
2011 Baroque music Festival, San Miguel de Allende, 2011 Official poster image.
2006 The Borderlands of Culture: Américo Paredes and the Transnational
2006 Imaginary by Ramón Saldivar. Duke University Press, 2006 Book cover image.
Museum Collections
Museo de la Ciudad de Leon, Leon GTO, Mexico • Museo de Santiago de Queretaro, Queretaro, Mexico • National Museum of Mexican Art, Chicago, IL.
A virtuosic painter, Mexican artist Alejandro Rivera weaves ingeniously complex allegories for contemporary times. His source material covers vast terrarin: A single series of paintings, for example, may include references as diverse as 14th Century religious art, early photography, Pop art, Greek mythology, economic theory and ancient history. All converge to form irresistible enigmas, careful collages that invite highly imaginitive readings. Analysing his pictures, we see that nearly every element in these immensely detailed works--a drop of water, a clock, a mirror, a stone wall, a shelf, a flower, a cup--figures into a greater narrative that speaks incisively about the human condition.
Energy and mastery pervade every inch of Rivera’s canvases. He does not shy from tackling the likes of Jorge Luis Borges’ dense philosophies or Velasquez’s brilliant legacy, while on a technical level he revels in performing ever more difficult feats. Problems of transparency and shifting textures are handled with characteristic grace. His work incorporates almost every imaginable surface--fabric, wood, glass, steel, grass, marble, tile, and even paint itself. A woman’s legs meld into a stone wall; her arm follows the contours of a landscape that becomes a cloth near the bottom of the painting.
As we have come to expect from Rivera, however, extravagant display couches deep meaning. “I tried to include as many different surfaces as possible in these paintings,” he says. “Some are man-made, and some are taken from nature, but all are related to human creation... As humans, we create things that reflect who we are and what we have achieved as a society. Most objects are thus a metaphor for our existence.”
More than anything else, perhaps, these are paintings about the nature of time--which is to say that they directly address the condition of being. Rivera’s work incessantly juxtaposes the old and the new: He might drape a fresh, beautiful, languid women in crumbling surroundings, or depict a pop-culture artifact alongside an ancient relic. Says Rivera: “The depiction of humans within their constructions, and the inevitable decay of both biological and inanimate entities, are constant in my work. The reappearance of an old master painting in an unlikely place gives it new meaning, and yet also questions our ability to produce anything truly original.” Indeed--an exploration of any Rivera painting reveals a world of cyclical time, where past informs present, future informs past, and metaphors span centuries.
Biography
Press
Current exhibition is on view in St. Helena March 12 - April 20
Mexican artist Alejandro Rivera creates richly layered allegories that speak to contemporary experience through the lens of history, philosophy, and symbolism. His work draws from a wide range of visual and intellectual sources. He looks at traditions of old master painting and drawing to ground his surreal visions and create a bridge between the tangible reality and the metaphysical.
In his most recent series featuring the Buddha head - Rivera believes in a compelling argument in which the Buddha is less a deity to be worshipped, and more a philosophical archetype; a personified state of cognitive and ethical ideals. While various traditions have historically layered the Buddha with mysticism and ritual, the core of the Buddhist project suggests that "Buddha" is a title, not a name; a potential, not a person. A part of his painting series stems from an aesthetical exploration of how the Buddha functions as a philosophical idea rather than a god like being. Suggesting the on going eternal reincarnation cycle, each painting features a different Buddha head immersed in its own particular circumstances, symbolizing the eternal search of enlightenment and self awareness.
“My paintings serve as an alchemical experiment where matter is transformed into dreams, spirit and myth” - Alejandro Rivera
Alejandro Rivera
My purpose as an artist is to capture creative aspects of human nature, in particular, the incessant work of transforming matter into object and object into art... to stimulate the dialogue between the observer and the work- a reflection on our corporeal existence and spirituality.
Current exhibition is on view in St. Helena March 12 - April 20
Mexican artist Alejandro Rivera creates richly layered allegories that speak to contemporary experience through the lens of history, philosophy, and symbolism. His work draws from a wide range of visual and intellectual sources. He looks at traditions of old master painting and drawing to ground his surreal visions and create a bridge between the tangible reality and the metaphysical.
In his most recent series featuring the Buddha head - Rivera believes in a compelling argument in which the Buddha is less a deity to be worshipped, and more a philosophical archetype; a personified state of cognitive and ethical ideals. While various traditions have historically layered the Buddha with mysticism and ritual, the core of the Buddhist project suggests that "Buddha" is a title, not a name; a potential, not a person. A part of his painting series stems from an aesthetical exploration of how the Buddha functions as a philosophical idea rather than a god like being. Suggesting the on going eternal reincarnation cycle, each painting features a different Buddha head immersed in its own particular circumstances, symbolizing the eternal search of enlightenment and self awareness.
“My paintings serve as an alchemical experiment where matter is transformed into dreams, spirit and myth” - Alejandro Rivera