Biography

Francisco Toledo is a Mexican painter, sculptor, and graphic artist. Toledo’s paintings reflect the mythology of Mexico and often display the influence of Surrealism and Paul Klee’s playful manner. This is evinced in his painting Hidden Scorpion (1996), in which the artist employs curling fractals to hint at the body of a scorpion. “What I do is a mixture of things, but the pre-Hispanic world has been a source of inspiration,” he explained. “There are certain solutions that are decorative that come from pre-Hispanic art and at the same time there is much primitive art that is refined or simple but also very modern.” Born on July 17, 1940 in Juchitán, Mexico, he studied at Taller Libre de Grabado in Mexico City, where he met the celebrated Oaxacan painter Rufino Tamayo. Toledo had his first exhibitions at the age of 19, both in Mexico City and Fort Worth, TX. In 1960, the artist moved to Paris where he produced prints in the studio of Stanley William Hayter and established his hallmark aesthetic. Retuning to Mexico in 1965, Toledo began producing works which address his Zapotec heritage. He continues to live and work in Juchitán, Mexico.