The Dream of Ometecuhtli Solo show: Gabino Abraham Castelán
The Dream of Ometecuhtli
Solo show: Gabino Abraham Castelán
Mahara+Co & Art Space 305 are pleased to invite you to the first solo exhibition in Miami by artist Gabino A. Castelán on Saturday, December 2, 2023. 5- 9 pm
"The Dream of Ometecuhtli" is a journey through Castelán's pictorial universe, where everyday life, mythology, and the Nahuatl concept of "Nepantla" merge to generate colorful, geometric, and dreamscape imagery. This exhibition profoundly explores liminal space, where dichotomy and transition converge—manifested through powerful images that intertwine personal memories, literature, and art history and bridge stories of subjugation from different times and places.
Ometeotl, the dual god comprising Ometecuhtli and Omecihuatl, is the supreme creator deity of the Aztecs, who resides in Omeyocan, the place of duality. In this visual journey, Castelán pays tribute to this polarity and the conflicts and desires of the human experience. His paintings and works on paper dive into "Nepantla," a concept representing the space between two worlds where one’s psychic, spiritual, and material points have potential transformation. In these works, the tangible and the abstract unite in a harmony of color and form.
Castelán depicts the worker as a phenomenon immersed in an epic journey of metamorphosis through the layering of drawing, painting, and collage. The tragedy of economic exploitation intersects with the fundamental truths of humanity: hunting, gathering, work, love, death, birth, marriage. In this body of work, the laborer is revered as the creator of the goods that sustain modern life. These works are not only a visual testimony of histories of agony but also of joy and self-determination. For Castelán, what’s important is how these stories echo through generations and what we can learn from them.
"The Dream of Ometecuhtli" is an exhibition that anchors us in our humanity and reminds us to accept ourselves – our own life stories. Through the ambiguity and mystery meticulously incorporated in each work, Castelán visually invites us to reflect on our own transformation as individuals and as a collective.
ABOUT GABINO A. CASTELÁN
Gabino A. Castelán (b. 1986, Epatlán, Puebla, México) lives and works in Florida and New York. He is an interdisciplinary artist whose practice is driven by research, process, and experimentation through various media, such as drawing, painting, installation, and utilitarian sculpture. Castelán received an MFA (2017) and a BFA (2012) in painting from Hunter College, and he was an artist-in-residence at Atelier Mondial in Basel, Switzerland (2020) and the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture (2014), which has deeply influenced his unique and provocative artistic approach.
ABOUT MAHARA+CO & ARTSPACE 305
Mahara+Co & Artspace305 is an art space that emerged from the fusion of two independent art projects in the city of Miami, FL. Our gallery has a curatorial focus on promoting the work of contemporary artists, with a particular emphasis on supporting and giving visibility to emerging local and international artists.
We firmly believe that the future of art spaces lies in collaboration. Therefore, one of our fundamental pillars at Mahara+Co & Artspace305 is the commitment to support international projects and galleries, providing them with a meaningful space to showcase their work. We are convinced that the diversity of voices and perspectives greatly enriches the artistic experience and contributes to a global cultural dialogue.