Rodrigo Hernández

Rodrigo Hernández (b. 1983, Mexico City) lives and works in Mexico City. He studied at the Jan Van Eyck Academie, Maastricht (2014) and obtained a BA at the Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste in Karlsruhe in 2013.

Hernández’s highly idiosyncratic visual vocabulary invites, in a similar manner as fiction, the suspension of belief and the adoption of imaginative perception. Each of his installations is constructed as a rebus of various sources, such as poetry, philosophy, narrative and dreams. The myriad of historical and aesthetic references in his work serves not as a statement in itself, but rather as an experiment on synthesis, which the viewer navigates through like a cosmos of possibilities. Hernández’s paintings, reliefs, sculptures and installations operate like machines for flexing the imagination, triggering encounters between imagery and meaning-making, and between forms and their environments.

Hernández was awarded with several international awards and grants, including the Campari Art Prize, 2018; Cité International des Arts Paris, 2016; BBVA-Museo Carrillo Gil and Jóvenes Creadores, 2016; National Fund of the Arts-FONCA, 2016; Laurenz-Haus Stiftung, Basel and Kunststiftung Baden-Württemberg, 2015; Jan Van Eyck Academie Stipendium, 2013; Graduiertenstipendium Landesstiftung Baden-Württemberg, 2013; DAAD-Preis zur Jahresausstellung, AdbK Karlsruhe, 2012, among others. He was a finalist of the Future Generation Art Prize in 2019 and attended the Istanbul Modern residencies in 2020; Pivô, São Paulo in 2018; the Residency Unlimited, New York, 2013; Christoph Merian Stiftung, 2013 and the Salzburg Sommerakademie, 2013.

Recent exhibitions of his work include: Gothenburg International Biennial for Contemporary Art, Gothenburg; Künstlerhaus Bremen, Bremen; Kestner Gesellschaft, Hanover; Museo Jumex, Mexico City; Museo de Arte Moderno de Medellín, Medellín; Culturgest, Porto; Fidelidade Arte, Lisboa; Istanbul Modern, Istanbul; Pinchuk ArtCenter, Kyiv; GaMec, Bergamo; ZKM Museum of Contemporary Art, Karlsruhe Resonances; Nuremberg Art Association, Nuremberg; Bonnefanten Museum, Maastricht; Gladstone Gallery, Brussels; MendesWoodDM, Brussels; 12th Biennial Femsa Monterrey, Monterrey; 5th Moscow Biennial of Young Art, Moscow Museum of Modern Art, Moscow; Museum Haus Konstruktiv, Zurich; Kunsthalle Basel, Basel.

Collections include: Fundacion ARCO; Nouveau Musée National de Monaco; Espacio de Arte Contemporánea, Mexico City; Colección Diéresis, Guadalajara, Mexico; Museo Amparo, Puebla, Mexico; 1800 Colleción, Tequila; AGI Verona, Italy; Bonnefanten Museum, Maastricht, Museum Haus Konstruktiv, Zurich; Kunstmuseum Sankt-Gallen, St. Gallen; Basel Stadt Kunstsammlung, Basel; Centro de Arte Dos de Mayo / Fundación ARCO, Madrid; ABN AMRO Art Collection, Amsterdam.

 

Education

2013 – 2014
Jan Van Eyck Academie, Maastricht
2010 – 2012
Kunstakademie Karlsruhe, P. Silvia Bächli
2006 – 2010
La Esmeralda, Mexico City

Grants – Prizes

2018
Campari Art Prize
2016
Cité International des Arts Paris
BBVA-Museo Carrillo Gil
Jóvenes Creadores, National Fund of the Arts-FONCA
2015
Laurenz-Haus Stiftung, Basel
Kunststiftung Baden-Württemberg
2013
Jóvenes Creadores, National Fund of the Arts-FONCA
Jan Van Eyck Academie Stipendium, Ministerie van Onderwijs, Cultuur en Wetenschappen
Graduiertenstipendium Landesstiftung Baden-Württemberg
2012
Kulturfonds der Landeshauptstadt Salzburg
2012
DAAD-Preis zur Jahresausstellung, AdbK Karlsruhe
2010
International Studies Grant, National Fund of the Arts, FONCA
2009
Internship Studies Grant, Landesstiftung Baden-Wurttemberg, Karlsruhe

Residencies

2020
Istanbul Modern, Istanbul
2018
Pivô, São Paulo
2016
Cité International des Arts, Paris
Residency Unlimited, New York, Christoph Merian Stiftung
2015
Laurenz-Haus Stiftung, Basel
2013
Salzburg Sommerakademie

Solo Exhibitions

2023
with what eyes?, Curated by Diego Villalobos, Wattis Institute for Contemporary Art, San Francisco
stars around this beautiful moon / hide back their luminous form, ChertLüdde, Berlin
Carrés, curated by Nadja Quante, Künstlerhaus, Bremen
Carrés, Pakt, Amsterdam
Flux of Things, Kestnergesellschaft, Hanover
2022
Anche di notte, P420, Bologna
El Espejo, curated by Marielsa Castro Vizcarra, Museo Jumex, Mexico City
I Am a Stranger and I Am Moving, Swiss Institute Offsite, New York
El Espejo, curated by Emiliano Valdés, Museo de Arte Moderno de Medellin, Medellin
2021
Art Basel Parcours, Basel, 2021
Petit-Musc, curated by Anders Kreuger, Kunsthalle Kohta, Helsinki
Moon Foulard, curated by Bruno Marchand, Culturgest, Lisbon
Pasado, curated by Marta Mestre, Centro Internacional das Artes José de Guimarães, Guimarães, Portugal
2020
WHAT IS IT THAT HAS ETCHED ITSELF INTO YOU?, Galeria Madragoa, Lisbonne
Dampcloot, Galerie Fons Welters, Amsterdam
A Moth to a Flame, curated by Humberto Moro, SCAD Museum of Art, Georgia, US
2019
Pedrigree, Galleria Campari, Milan
¿Qué escuchó cuando escucho el discurrir del tiempo?, Sala de Arte Público Siqueiros, Mexico City
WHO LOVES YOU, Kunsthalle Winterthur, Winterthur
A Complete Unknown, curated by John Rasmussen, Midway Contemporary Art, Minneapolis
2018
The real world does not take flight, curated by Fernanda Brenner, Pivô, São Paulo
The Gourd and the Fish, curated by by Samuel Leuenberger & Elise Lammer, SALTS, Basel
2017
Stelo, (with Rita Ponce de León), P420, Bologna
J’aime Eva, ChertLüdde Gallery , Berlin
Plasma, Galeria Madragoa, Lisbon
The Shakiest of Things, Kim?, Riga
2016
Every forest madly in love with the moon has a highway crossing it from one side to the other, curated by Chris Sharp, Kurimanzutto, Mexico City
I am nothing, Heidelberger Kunstverein
2015
El pequeño centro, Museo del Chopo, Mexico City
2014
What is the Moon?<, Bonnefantenmuseum, Maastricht
Go, Gentle Scorpio!<, Parallel Oaxaca, Oaxaca
2013
A Sense of Possibility, curated by Roos Gortzak, Weingrüll, Karlsruhe
2012
Pedro, o.T. Raum für aktuelle Kunst, Lucerne

Group Exhibitions

2023
My Demons My Angels, ChertLüdde Berlin
Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art: forms of the surrounding futures, Curated by João Laia, Göteborg
Bucket List, Galeria Madragoa, Lisbon
Double Plus Good, Nest, Den Hague
2022
Edge Effect: Biennial of the Americas, curated by Black Cube / Cortney Stell, Rodrigo Ortiz Monasterio, Denver, US
El ensamble del ocaso, curated by Ana Pérez Escoto & PEANA, Sculpture Patio at MARCO, Monterrey
Por debajo del árbol, curated by Ana Pérez Escoto and Carlota Pérez-Jofre, PEANA, Monterrey
Entre Irse Y Quedarse, curated by Mario Navarro, Palace Enterprise, Copenhagen
2021
Os Monstros de Babaloo, curated by Victor Gorgulho,Fortes D’Aloia & Gabriel, São Paulo
2020
Guests: Artists and Craftspeople, curated by Öykü Özsoy and Mit Mesci, Istanbul Modern, Istanbul
El oro de los tigres, curated by Ana Medoza Aldana, Air de Paris, Paris
2019
El nudo, curated by Manuel Moscoso, CarrerasMugica, Bilbao
Margins of Ten: Rodrigo Hernández, curated by Rosa Lleó, NoguerasBlanchard, l’Hospotalet, Barcelona
Future Generation Art Prize 2019, curated by Björn Geldof and Tatiana Kochubinska, Palazzo Ca’Tron, Venice
No habrá nunca una puerta. Estás adentro., Sala de Arte Santander, Madrid
Exhibition of 21 Artists Shortlisted for the Future Generation Art Prize 2019, Pinchuk Art Center, Kyiv
ARCOmadrid, with ChertLüdde, Dialogues Section with Ruth Wolf-Rehfeldt
2018
20 Jahre Kunst Raum Riehen – Die Jubilaümsausstellung, curated by Kiki Seiler-Michalitsi, Kunst Raum, Riehen
The Lulennial II: A Low-Hanging Fruit, Lulu, Mexico City
2017
Resonanzen. 40 Jahre Kunststiftung Baden-Württemberg, ZKM | Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie, Karlsruhe
Neither, curated by Fernanda Brenner, Mendes Wood DM, Brussels
Ilusion and Revelation, Bonnefantenmuseum, Maastricht
Pilger Mills, Kunstverein Nürnberg, Nürnberg
Ghosting of beings and worlds, Grey Noise, Dubai
20th Sesc_Videobrasil, Sao Paulo
An ear, severed, listens, ChertLüdde, Berlin
Jade Bi, Galeria Madragoa, Lisbon
Independence Day, Sommer Gallery , Tel Aviv
The Finger that shows the Moon, Dan Gunn, Berlin
2016
As if in a foreign country, Galerie nächst St. Stephan Rosemarie
Schwarzwälder, Vienna
Hyperconnected – 5th Moscow Biennale, curated by Joâo Laia, Moscow
Um die Ecke Denken, Museum Haus Konstruktiv, Zurich
Marriage, Queer Thoughts, New York
El que camina al lado, curated by Luiza Teixeira de Freitas, Claudia Segura Travesia Cuatro, Madrid
Leaping over a quail, Chert Berlin
Sem saber quando, curated by Luiza Teixeira de Freitas, Galeria Silvia Cintra, Rio de Janeiro
The birds, Nixon, Mexico City
Duo, T66, Freiburg
2015
Jungs, hier kommt der Masterplan, Kunsthalle Basel
Human Nature, curated by Samuel Leuenberger, Espace Arlaud, Lausanne
Parallel Oaxaca at Supplement Gallery, curated by Oliver M.Kandt, London
O.T., Kunstraum Riehen, Riehen-Basel
Como fantasmas que vienen…, Fundacion ESP AC, Mexico City
Where the trees line…, P420 Bologna
Six Positions in Painting, Galerie Bernhard, Zurich
Adam and Eve and the Devil, Marres, Maastricht
The School of Nature and Principle, Elizabeth Foundation of the Arts,New York, US Bienal de las Fronteras, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Tamaulipas
2014
Sometimes something happens, Galerie Fons Welters, Amsterdam
A Special Arrow Was Shot In The Neck…, curated by Vivian Ziherl and Natasha Ginwala, David Roberts Art Foundation, London
Autodestrucción4: Demolición, curated by Abraham Cruzvillegas, Thomas Dane Gallery, London
Mark P works both ways, FRAC Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, Marseille
ERNTE, Kunsthaus Baselland, Mutenz/Basel
Moules, Oeufs, Frites, curated by Ardi Peols, The Ridder , Maastricht
Roving Room, Habersham Mills, Demorest, Georgia
Van Eyck Open Studios, Jan Van Eyck Academie, Maastricht
2013
Magic Hour, The Ridder, curated by Ardi Peols, Maastricht
Six Memos fort he Next…, Magazin 4 – Bregenzer Kunstverein, Bregenz
The Carrousel Collection, 45cbm Studioraum – Kunsthalle Baden-Baden
Jenseits des Rahmens, Kunstverein Freiburg
Regionale 13, Kunstraum Riehen, Riehen-Basel
Left Eye, Right Eye, V8, Karlsruhe
Mark Pezinger Verlag at Pioneer Works, New York
Wood(s), Zwinger Gallery , Berlin
I don’t know, Vamiali’s Gallery , Atenas
The Mystery of Intersecting Paths, HBK, Braunschweig
2012
When Does Something Become…?, Walker Art Center, Minneapolis
Regionale 13, Kunst Raum Riehen, Basel
La Distancia es el Material, New Museum of Contemporary Art, Guatemala
Reading Disorders, Kunstverein Kassel, Kassel
London’s Calling and It’s Calling You Gay, Preteen Gallery, Mexico City
O Tannebaum, curated by Manfred Pernice, Alte Saline Hallein, Salzburg
Five in a Row, deuxpiece, Basel
AutoconßtrukSchön, Arratia Beer Gallery, Berlin
2011
Les jeux sont faits, Hinterhof, Basel
Übermorgenkünstler II, Heidelberger Kunstverein, Heidelberg
Se Amable, Centro Cultural de Cali, Cali
Ovo Host, National Museum of the Philippines, Manila
Vänster, Kulturhuset, Stockholm
SiempreOtraVez, Museo Nacional de Arte Moderno, Mexico City

Selected Press

2023
“Die Fledermaus hat schlecht geträumt Rodrigo Hernández bei ChertLüdde”, by Lara Brörken, Gallery Talk, 31 October 2023, online.
“Rodrigo Hernández”, Studio Magazine, February 2023, printed.
2022
“El Espejo, la exposición de Rodrigo Hernández en el Museo Jumex” by Andrea Ochoa, on Architectural Digest, 12 August 2022, online.
“Rodrigo Hernández: conversación circular” by Carolina Magis Weinberg, ONDA MX, August 2022, online.
“Rodrigo Hernández”, on OBRA, August 2022, Cover & p. 11.
“‘El Espejo’ de Rodrigo Hernández”, on La Revista De Milenio, July 2022, online.
2021
“Art Basel’s Other Exhibition Hall Is a City” by Ginanne Brownell, on New York Times, 21 September 2021, online.
2020
“Rodrigo Hernández Galerie Fons Welters” by Huib Haye van der Werf, on ARTFORUM, December 2020, p.194.
“Four artists to watch in 2020: Barbara Casavecchia on Rodrigo Hernández” by Barbara Casavecchia, on FRIEZE, January and February 2020, pp. 104-105
2018
“Rodrigo Hernándes at Pivô”, on ArtViewer, 26 September 2018
“Art Basel 2018: Swiss Institute director Simon Castets’ picks for what to see outside the fair”, on CNN style, 14 June 2018
“Five to see: Basel”, on ArtReview, 12 June 2018″
“Your Guide to the Best Shows in Basel”, on FRIEZE, 11 June 2018
“Rodrigo Hernández at Salts, Basel, Switzerland” on ARTnews, 7 June 2018
2017
“Rodrigo Hernández at ChertLüdde, Berlin” on CURA., November 2017
“Critics’ picks” by Mitch Speed on ARTFORUM, November 2017
“Les mots et les images” by Amy Zion on FlashArt, Summer issue 2017
2016
“Rodrigo Hernández: I Am Nothing” by Jo-ey Tang on ARTFORUM, September 2016
“Rodrigo Hernández: Every forest madly in love with the moon has a highway crossing it from one side to the other” by João Mourão & Luís Silva on CURA., pag.156-165, Issue 22, Summer 2016
2015
“Things are moving” on Mousse magazine, pag. 109-110, printed version, issue #49, Summer 2015
“Ein «Mexiko-Dadaist» durchstöbert die Bibliotheken in Basel” by Simon Baur on bz Basel, pag.31, 24th March 2015
“Rodrigo Hernández: What is the moon?” by Chris Sharp on ArtReview, pag.87, March 2015

Catalogues-Publications

2023
“Im zeichen der stätte und Tiere” by Brigitte Wernburg, Taz, 15 Dezember 2023, online.
“Die Fledermaus hat schlecht geträumt Rodrigo Hernández bei ChertLüdde” by Lara Bröken, 31 Oktober 2023, online

2019
“Resonanzen Eine Ausstellung der Kunststiftung Baden-Württemberg im ZKM | Zentrum für Kunst und Medien Kalsruhe”, Kerber Verlag, Bielefeld. ISBN: 978-3-7356-0483-5
“There’ll never be a door you’re inside: Works from the Coleção Teixera de Freitas”, Bold Editing and Printing, Fundación Banco Santander, Málaga. ISBN: 978-84-17264-09-3
2017
“I am Nothing”, Heidelberger Kunstverein / Bom Dia Verlag, Berlin
2014
“What is the moon?”, Bonnefanten Museum / Bom Dia Verlag, Berlin
“How do you do?”, VIS publications
“A Sense of Possibility”, VIS publications
“Dutch Flat Things”, Mark Pezinger Verlag
2013
“Left Eye, Right Eye”, Charles Nypels Lab, Jan Van Eyck Academie, Maastricht
2012
“Sculptures”, Mark Pezinger Verlag, Berlin
“Rodrigo Hernández: POT”, Fluid Editions, Karlsruhe