Justin Favela (b. 1986, Las Vegas) is an interdisciplinary artist whose innovative use of hand-crafted processes has shaped new conversations in contemporary art, blending humor with keen observations of popular culture and art history to interrogate Latinx identity, cultural appropriation, and the layered histories of his Mexican and Guatemalan heritage. At the core of his art practice is his investigation of traditional Mexican and Latin American craft—specifically cartonería (more commonly known as piñata-making).
Justin has become recognized for his wall sculptures and large-scale installations that combine an obsession with pop culture with a side-eye towards art history—imagine a life-size piñata-style lowrider sculpture, or an entire gallery covered floor-to-ceiling with a fringed tissue paper installation remixing José María Velasco’s landscape paintings. You’re pulled in by the spectacle of color and movement, and you leave thinking, “I didn’t see this like that before.”
This conversation about art and culture with the broader public is important to Justin’s practice. His groundbreaking podcast, Latinos Who Lunch, (on which he is known as “Favy Fav”) is a collaboration with art historian, curator, and friend, Emmanuel Ortega (aka “Babelito”). Over its five-year run, Latinos Who Lunch has expanded the dialogue at the intersection of art and Latinx representation and identity for audiences across America.
Justin’s work has been the subject of dozens of institutional exhibitions since 2007. In 2025, he presented solo exhibitions at the New Britain Museum of American Art, New Britain, CT and the Ulrich Museum of Art, Wichita, KS. His rooms-sized installation and sculptures are currently on exhibition at Ballroom Marfa and his monumental site-specific commission, Capilla de Maíz (Maize Chapel), is the subject of a one-person exhibition at the Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, D.C., through 2026. His work has been aquired by many public and private collections. He has completed major commissioned projects for museums including the Denver Art Museum, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Amon Carter Museum of American Art, and El Museo del Barrio. He has participated in numerous residencies, and has curated exhibitions and co-produced unique projects like Live in America. He is the recipient of the 2018 Alan Turing LGTBIQ Award for International Artist, and a recipient of the 2021 Joan Mitchell Fellowship. He holds a BFA in fine art from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.