Mi gente: Eduardo Sarabia

Eduardo Sarabia is one of the most influential Mexican artists of his generation. He works across diverse artistic techniques, including painting, installation, ceramics, and sculpture. His work constantly evokes the fantastic and the magical yet is grounded, often alluding to elements of his own life as well as various sociopolitical issues, such as immigration or ecology. It is at this very intersection that his latest proposal, Mi Gente (My People), takes shape. 

One of the most representative series in Eduardo Sarabia's practice features medium- and large-format portraits where the figure either vanishes or is obscured by a trompe l'oeil effect resembling large oil stains. These "stains," which are applied to the canvas as if it were his mixing palette, often completely or partially cover the features of the subject being portrayed. This technique, which the artist has been practicing for more than fifteen years now, takes on a much more intimate and evocative character in the exhibition Mi Gente; intimate, because this time, the subjects portrayed are very close friends of the artist—"his people," as the title of the exhibition suggests. Meaningful people in his life whom he has always counted on and that were always supportive of both his life and his career.  Sarabia’s exhibition Mi Gente is also evocative because, through the representation of these important people, the artist seeks to capture a specific moment in present history that he and his friends perceive with concern: the current state of immigration policy in the United States. We've all seen on the news how the deployment of ICE (United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement) has led to the targeting of members of the American Latino community and how this is causing truly horrific situations throughout the United States, but especially in Los Angeles, the city where Eduardo Sarabia was born and raised and where his parents still live today. 

It is paradoxical, therefore, that in the portraits presented in this exhibition, the layers of paint prevent us from seeing the subject's face, thus eliminating the opportunity for prejudice or stereotyping based on a person's physical appearance. And it is precisely this "distortion" of the portrait that functions as a perfect metaphor for what is happening with US immigration policies. With these works, the artist pays homage not only to his friends but also to all those who currently feel persecuted. His ultimate intention is to ensure they are remembered—to preserve their presence and stories in collective memory. 

Accompanying the canvases of Mi Gente, Eduardo also presents a series of small-format paintings and two hand-woven tapestries that the artist has grouped under the title La Luz (The Light). These works emerge from a more conceptual process yet remain closely tied to Mi Gente through their deeply personal origin. They stem from an intimate impulse, as the artist engaged in the raw exercise of confronting the blank canvas and translating his emotions into paint. The resulting pieces center on recurring motifs in Sarabia’s practice—most notably, fire and the light it radiates. 

Eduardo Sarabia (Los Ángeles, 1976) lives and works in Guadalajara (México). His work has been exhibited in museums and galleries around the globe and is part of different collections, public and private.  During 2023 and 2024 he researched the topic of the total eclipse of the Sun that took place on April 8th, 2024.  Focusing on this project he presented three solo exhibitions: Prologue en Maureen Paley, Londres (2023); 4 Minutos de Oscuridad in Galería OMR, Ciudad de México (2024) and Viaje hacia el Eclipse, Museo de Arte de Mazatlán (2024).  

His work has been also presented at different museums and art spaces such as: Dallas Contemporary, Texas, US; CAC Málaga, España; Museo Universitario del Chopo, CDMX; The Mistake Room, LA; Museo Tamayo, CDMX; Instituto Cultural Cabañas, Guadalajara; Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca, México; Museum of Contemporary Art, Denver, US; Tokyo Wonder Site, Japón, Tokyo; ASU Art Museum, Tempe, Arizona, US; Santa Monica Museum of Art, California, US, among others. He was part of Desert X 2021 with the site-specific project The Passenger, made from handmade Mexican “petates”.  His more recent exhibition is SUEÑXS at Fundación Careyes, Jalisco, Mexico.