Julio Galán

Julio Galán studied architecture at the Universidad de Monterrey but was a self-taught painter. In 1984, he moved to New York, motivated by his interest in developing his pictorial work. There, he met Andy Warhol, who published Galán’s work in Interview, which catapulted him to success. His time in New York also allowed him to gain recognition from gallery owners who took an interest in not only the Mexican, pre-Columbian, and Roman Catholic elements in his work but also a series of characteristics that aligned him with contemporary artists who daringly questioned art and its traditional discourses and treatments. Much of his works focus on personal analysis, inspired by artists such as Frida Kahlo, Sigmar Polke, and Francisco Clemente. By 1989, he had become one of the best-known Mexican artists in the world, presenting his work in spaces such as the Centre Pompidou in Paris.