The paintings of the series “Ashes + Origin” are part of a more complex and extensive body of work, entitled “Hijo del Maíz”, which includes photography, video, installation and sculpture.
Through this body of work I find the opportunity to open a dialogue about identity, rediscovering it through the stories embodied in each of the works.
These stories are memories that speak of roots, origin, of who I am and what I’ve experienced away from my country, as contradictory as art can be, these same stories narrated on the surface of the paintings bring me closer to home, with melancholy and poetry I speak of ancestors, using a different an unique aesthetic.
The texture, the graphisms, the text and numerology that subtly appear on the paintings are telling stories of the past, present and future, referring to death and life, but most importantly about the opportunity to rebirth and reinvent ourselves.
The materials: sand, paint, pigments, fabric, wood, metal and corn as main material.
The corn is not only a material, is also the concept, using it raw and also as ashes represents an homology, thus allowing me to express a duality, opening the door to a realm of new possibilities.
DIEGO ANAYA (b. 1986) is a Mexican born artist based Brooklyn, New York. In 2008 Diego was introduced to the art world through an apprenticeship at the Academy of Contemporary Art in Monterrey Mex. Diego’s rolodex of work includes a wide and diverse range in painting, drawing, sculpture and installation. But regardless of the genre he touches, all the artwork have the same common goal in mind – to explore the intricate relationship between art, soul, mind, love and life from a personal and a social perspective.
Diego has had the opportunity to display his work internationally, in solo shows, group shows, art fairs, auctions and charitable events, as well the fortuity to be picked up by prestigious private collectors throughout México, U.S. and Asia.