Filogonio Naxín

The art of Filogonio Naxín fuses Mazatec cosmology with contemporary art to create a language that speaks about his views of our current world. His work combines a deconstruction of traditional cultural elements often highlighting social and environmental issues from a personal perspective that flows from values rooted in his Mazatec cultural heritage. He has been described as the creator of “Mazatec surrealism", in this regard he underlines: “I do not paint like a Mazatec, that would mean representing the objects that exist in my community. Being an indigenous person does not mean that I ought to paint the things that I am used to seeing, I paint from a contemporary view, meaning that I take my culture as a starting point, the Mazatec cosmology, and then I construct a new language without losing my identity."

In Naxín´s paintings, landscapes and characters representing human beings, and not so much human beings but often chimeras, emerge in a continuum of living things that are in constant metamorphosis and in a constant interaction with the inanimate matter. The unveiling of new natures reminds us of the unity of the universe and the use of lively colors invites us to dive into a vibrant, optimistic, and exultant mood as the constraints imposed by our preconceptions of order and beauty are suddenly challenged.

Filogonio Naxín grew up surrounded by the stories told by his grandparents and parents. At the age of 6 he was already helping his parents by working in the fields, and at the same time trying to find the time to draw.  His first language is Mazatec, and his second language, he affirms, is painting, as he did not learn to speak Spanish until the age of 14. At 18, he moved to Mexico City where he performed multiple jobs, from butcher to security guard, until he could save enough money to return to Oaxaca and pursue a degree in plastic arts. 

Naxín is from Mazatlán Villa de Flores, Cañada Region, Mazatec territory in the State of Oaxaca, Mexico. He holds a B.A in Visual and Plastic Arts from the Autonomous University Benito Juárez, Oaxaca. He is also a highly demanded book illustrator, and a promoter of Mazatec language and culture. As a teacher, he has offered painting, drawing, and printmaking workshops at multiple institutions. He has presented his work in more than 30 individual exhibitions, among them at the Institute of Graphic Arts of Oaxaca-IAGO, at the National Museum of World Cultures of the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH); and at the National Museum of Popular Cultures. His work has been featured in multiple magazines and he has had multiple interviews for cultural TV shows and documentaries.

Naxín´s work is a poem, that emerges from the roots of his cultural heritage and refreshes our outlook, it reminds us that there is yet much to say, much to discover, and much to cherish, in the gold mine that is multiculturality, a feature of our species.