Description:

Francisco Benjamin Lopez Toledo
Mexican, 1940-2019
Untitled
oil and sand on canvas
Signed and inscribed "Paris" en verso, 28 3/4 in. x 36 1/4 in., framed, overall, 32 1/4 in. x 39 3/4 in. x 2 in.

Provenance: Collection of Sally and the Late Dr. Lawrence O'Meallie, New Orleans.

  • Provenance: Francisco Toledo was born in 1940 in Juchitán, Mexico. He studied at the Benito Juarez Autonomous University in Oaxaca and the Taller Libre de Grabado in Mexico City before moving to Paris in 1960. Toledo honed his printmaking skills in the studio of Stanley William Hayter and learned from writer Octavio Paz, artist Rufino Tamayo, and many others. By the time he returned to Mexico in 1965, he was celebrated in Europe for his "development of the mythic" and "his sacred sense of life." Toledo then settled in Oaxaca and was part of "la Ruptura" (or the Breakaway Generation), a group of Mexican artists working against established nationalistic styles. His imagery often featured Zapotec elements from his indigenous pre-Columbian heritage. Toledo was regarded by many as Mexico's greatest living artist until his death in 2019.

    Toledo's art is based on a fantastic realism that reflects a deep appreciation for, and astute observation of, nature, in particular animals not often associated with beauty, such as insects, toads and bats. Anthropomorphized creatures and metamorphosed objects are persistent facets of his work, which consistently served as an homage to the cosmic mysteries of the world. His style has been described as using folklore, Shamanism, and mysticism to blend animals and humans; expressionistic; and environmental. Upon his move to Paris, Toledo soon evolved a sacred, fanciful zoology in drawings and paintings, connecting his practice both to the indigenous world of his native Juchitán and to the modern symbolism popular with many of his contemporaries such as Klee and Chagall. These traits are evident in the important work offered here, signed and inscribed "Paris" en verso. The painting also displays the influence of Tamayo in the use of sand to create a heavily textured, rich surface. The subject is a surrealist confluence of the natural and supernatural, fraught with a sense of mystery that invites the viewer to further explore Toledo's fantastical world.

    Toledo was called El Maestro, the master or teacher, who was devoted to bringing art to the masses. He was deeply invested in his community in Oaxaca and thus created the Oaxaca Museum of Contemporary Arts, the Graphic Arts Institute of Oaxaca, a library for the blind, a photographic arts center, a botanical garden, and more. He described these projects as his inspiration to continue producing and selling art. Toledo's work is now included in the collections of major institutions in the United States, Mexico, and internationally.

    Ref.: "Biographical Note." Francisco Toledo. www.franciscotoledo.com. Accessed Oct. 18, 2024; "Francisco Toledo." The Met. www.metmuseum.org. Accessed Oct. 18, 2024; "Francisco Toledo." Davidson Galleries. www.davidsongalleries.com. Accessed Oct. 18, 2024.
  • Dimensions: 28 3/4 in. x 36 1/4 in
  • Medium: oil and sand on canvas
  • Condition: Significant buckling/unevenness of canvas, possibly inherent to some extent; very thick paint layer recently stabilized by professional conservator; areas of craquelure visible throughout, some with evidence of past flaking; small areas of inpainting throughout corresponding to lines of craquelure and patches of thin paint; canvas visible in small areas on body and legs of figure, possibly hand of the artist; surface dust; small losses and abrasions along edges; gold painted frame with numerous marks, nicks and abrasions.

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November 22, 2024 11:00 AM CST
New Orleans, LA, US

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