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Lot Essay
Toledo has often been referred to as the greatest modern Mexican artist since Rufino Tamayo and was born (like his predessesor) in the State of Oaxaca. Similarly, the artist is also a Zapotec Indian (as was Tamayo) and his art primarily reflects his indigenous roots.
After having completed initial art studies in Mexico, Toledo spent years working in Paris where he perfected his skills as an artist and a print-maker. While never abandoning his ties to Mexico, he wandered the world, working in New York, Spain and again, in Paris. His works convey many forms of the human condition, linking our natural surroundings to the supernatural and intertwining relationships between man and nature.
The images of animals form a recurrent theme in Toledo's paintings, as do the folkloric tales of his Juchetan childhood. Turtles, iguanas, toads, rabbits and insects appear in never-ending interpretations in watercolours, etchings and paintings. Using native amate paper, oils, sand, bark, and even ceramics, Toledo creates an imaginary world in which man and beast interact.
Pescado de San Marco is a delicately sketched fish on a broadley-checkered earthcolored background. The fish ironically appears to be still and yet it seems to swim, casting a shadow in the shallow water. Everything in the composition including the shape of the fish, the texture of the work, the light and shadow on the surface, gives the spectator both the feeling of a prehistoric cave-drawing as well as a modern-day touch. It is this combination of techniques which imbues Toledo's work with its uniqueness and endless fascination.
After having completed initial art studies in Mexico, Toledo spent years working in Paris where he perfected his skills as an artist and a print-maker. While never abandoning his ties to Mexico, he wandered the world, working in New York, Spain and again, in Paris. His works convey many forms of the human condition, linking our natural surroundings to the supernatural and intertwining relationships between man and nature.
The images of animals form a recurrent theme in Toledo's paintings, as do the folkloric tales of his Juchetan childhood. Turtles, iguanas, toads, rabbits and insects appear in never-ending interpretations in watercolours, etchings and paintings. Using native amate paper, oils, sand, bark, and even ceramics, Toledo creates an imaginary world in which man and beast interact.
Pescado de San Marco is a delicately sketched fish on a broadley-checkered earthcolored background. The fish ironically appears to be still and yet it seems to swim, casting a shadow in the shallow water. Everything in the composition including the shape of the fish, the texture of the work, the light and shadow on the surface, gives the spectator both the feeling of a prehistoric cave-drawing as well as a modern-day touch. It is this combination of techniques which imbues Toledo's work with its uniqueness and endless fascination.