“I am interested in exploring the notions of authenticity, place, and identity, using familiar materials to make large-scale installations, sculptures, and paintings. As a queer person of color working in the United States, I believe that expressing joy, making art accessible, and taking up space can be a political act.”
Justin Favela 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 Justin’s 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.”