Francisco Toledo (Mexican, 2019)

Francisco Toledo (Mexican, b.1940) is a graphic artist who works in various media including sculpture, pottery, painting, weaving, and graphic arts. He studied in the Escuela de Bellas Artes de Oaxaca and the Centro Superior de Artes Aplicadas del Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes, where he studied under Guillermo Silva Santamaria (Columbian, 1927–2007). In the early 1960s, Toledo traveled throughout Europe and eventually settled in Paris, France. Soon, he set himself up in the workshop of artist Stanley William Hayter (British, 1901–1988).

In 1965, Toledo returned to Mexico and began using what he had learned in Europe to create a new style of Mexican Art. In 1973, he had a show in the Carl Finkler Gallery in Paris, and, in 1975, he had a show at the Martha Jackson Gallery in New York. By 1980, his work was extensive enough for the Museum of Modern Art in Mexico City to hold a retrospective. His work is concerned with the cultural traditions of his birthplace, the Mexican state of Oaxaca. The myths, people, flora, and fauna of Oaxaca play major roles in many of his works. He has illustrated numerous books based on the ancestral stories of his people. These books include Chilam Balam, Guachi, and Sahagún. Works such as Chivo and Shoe and Toads show Toledo's use of Oaxaca and animals. He has also created a series of 15 prints inspired by Franz Kafka's Report For an Academy. Toledo has spent much of his life promoting the arts in Oaxaca. In 1988, he founded the Instituto de Artes Graficas de Oaxaca, which currently holds roughly 12,000 books dealing with numerous art forms and Mexican Art. He also founded the Museum de Arte Contemporaneo de Oaxaca. His work is represented in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Museo Tamayo in Mexico City, Mexico.

For his social work and devotion to his home state, Toledo has received numerous awards including the Mexican National Prize in 1998, the Prince Claus Award in 2000, and the Right Livelihood Award in 2005. He is the father of the poet Natalia Toledo (Mexican, b.1968) and artists Dr Lakra (Mexican, b.1972) and Laureana Toledo (Mexican, b.1970). Toledo currently lives and works in Oaxaca, Mexico.

Timeline

1940
Born in Juchitan, Oaxaca, Mexico
1952
Began studying engraving under Arturo Garcia Bustos at the Bellas Artes school, Oaxaca, Mexico
1957
Studied in the free engraving workshop at Escuela de Artesania y Diseno of Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes, Mexico City, Mexico
Lives and works in Oaxaca City, Mexico

Exhibitions

2009
Francisco Toledo, Museo de Arte Moderno de Bogotá, Santafé de Bogota, Colombia (solo)
2008
Francisco Toledo, Galería Patricia Ready, Santiago, Chile (solo)
2007
Stanlee & Gerald Rubin Center for the Visual Arts, University of El Paso, TX
El Maestro Francisco Toledo: Art from Oaxaca, 1959 – 2006, Princeton University Art Museum, Princeton, NJ
2005
Francisco Toledo: Grafica Reciente, Museo de Arte Contemporaneo Ateneo de Yucatan, Mérida, Mexico (solo)
Los pajaros: Serie de grabados de Francisco Toledo, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Monterrey, Monterrey, Mexico (solo)
2004
Francisco Toledo: Recent Paintings, Latin American Masters, Beverly Hills, CA
Los cuadernos de la mierda; de Francisco Toledo, Museo de las Artes Universidad de Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Mexico (solo)
Francisco Toledo: Recent Graphic Works, Latin American Masters, Beverly Hills, CA (solo)
2003
Francisco Toledo: Obra Gráfica, Museo Nacional de Artes Visuales, Montevideo, Uruguay (solo)
Francisco Toledo: Cuento del Conejo y el Coyote, Museo de Arte de Zapopan, Zapopan, Mexico (solo)
2002
Francisco Toledo Obra Grafica para Arvi11974-2001, Galeria Arvil, Mexico City, Mexico; Museo de Anes Visuales de Santiago, Santiago de Chile, Chile (solo)
2001
Cuadernos de la Mierda, Museo de Arte Contemporane, Oaxaca, Mexico
Francisco Toledo, Centro Cultural Borges, Buenas Aires, Argentina (solo)
Obra Grafica para ArviI 1974-2001, Palacio de Bellas, Mexico City, Mexico
2000
Francisco Toledo, Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid, Spain (solo)
Francisco Toledo, Selected Works on Paper 1999-2000 Masters, Beverly Hills, CA (solo)
Francisco Toledo, Whitechapel Art Gallery, London, UK; Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid, Spain (solo)
Zoologia Fantastica, Casa de America, Madrid, Spain
Francisco Toledo, Bjennegarard Gallery, Copenhague, Denmark (solo)
La Sombra del Deseo, GaleriaJuan Martin, Mexico City, Mexico
Francisco Toledo Recent Works on Paper Etchings, Lit Xilographies from 1999.2000, Museum of Latin Americ Beach, CA (solo)
1998
Summer Group Show, Jason McCoy Gallery, New York, NY
1996
Selection of Latin American Masters, Mary-Anne Martin/Fine Art, New York, NY
Surrealism in Latin American Art, Bochum, Germany
Fransisco Toledo, Master Printmaker, Latin American Masters, Beverly Hills, CA (solo)
1993
Death of Taste, Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum, Chicago, IL
Erotica, Galeria Juan Martin, Mexico City, Mexico
Los Cuadernos Insomnes, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Alfredo Zalce, Morella, Michoacán, Mexico
1992
Small-Scale Sculpture, Felbach, Germany
Latin American Art, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France
Home Made in Oaxaca, Monterrey, Mexico
1991
Latin American Masters, Los Angeles, CA
1984
Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes, Mexico City, Mexico
1974
Martha Jackson Gallery, New York, NY
1971
Dibujos de Francisco Toledo, Galeria Arvil, Mexico City, Mexico (solo)
1970
Francisco Toledo, Jack Misrachi Gallery, New York, NY (solo)
1969
Toledo. Obra Grafica, Galeria Juan Martin, Mexico City, Mexico (solo)
1968
Francisco Toledo, Galeria Juan Martin, Mexico City, Mexico (solo)
1967
Francisco Toledo, Arthur Tooth & Sons, London, England (solo)
1965
Galeria Haaken, Oslo, Norway (solo)
Galeria Misrachi, Mexico City, Mexico
Francisco Toledo, Galeria Antonio Souza, Mexico City, Mexico
Saidenberg Gallery, New York, NY
Francisco Toledo, Galerie Karl Flinker, Paris, France (solo)
1964
Galerie Rene Andrieu, Toulouse, France (solo)
Hamilton Galleries, London, England (solo)
1963
Francisco Toledo, Galerie Karl Flinker, Paris, France (solo)
Francisco Toledo, Galeria Antonio Souza, Mexico City, Mexico (solo)
1962
Francisco Toledo, Galeria Antonio Souza, Mexico City, Mexico (solo)
1959
Galería Antonio Souza, Mexico City, Mexico

Public Collections

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Mexico
Museo Tamayo, Mexico City, Mexico
Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara, CA