Elizabeth Xi Bauer is thrilled to announce the representation of Antonio Pichillá Quiacaín. Known for his compelling exploration of Maya heritage and the intersection of Indigenous traditions with contemporary art, Pichillá will have his highly anticipated second solo exhibition with the gallery in June 2025 at Elizabeth Xi Bauer’s new Exmouth Market space.
Antonio Pichillá Quiacaín: In front of the lake, at Elizabeth Xi Bauer, 2023. Photograph: Richard Ivey.
This exhibition will coincide with the release of Ombligo Tierra (Navel-Earth) a major new publication curated by Pichillá himself, offering an in-depth look at his artistic journey. Featuring contributions from key voices in the fields of art and anthropology, this book will spotlight his recent works, alongside an interview with the artist by Pablo José Ramírez, curator at the Hammer Museum and former curator at Tate Modern.
Pichillá’s work is currently part of the Inaugural Exhibition at Elizabeth Xi Bauer’s Exmouth Market gallery, which has now been extended until 22nd March 2025.
Antonio Pichillá Quiacaín working in his studio, San Pedro La Laguna, Guatemala. Courtesy of the Artist.
A Bold Vision Rooted in Tradition
Pichillá’s artwork explores the intricate relationship between Indigenous craft traditions and contemporary Western art, with a particular focus on materials inspired by Maya cosmology and the natural world. His works, often combining stones, branches, textiles and handmade objects, are a powerful expression of his Tz’utujil heritage. Through his work, Pichillá resists homogenised cultural narratives, celebrating the rich diversity of Indigenous life and identity.
As he Pichillá describes it, his work is a “restless search for a bond that integrates with the environment as something inexact, uncodified,” reflecting his deep commitment to capturing the fluidity of cultural identity.
Antonio Pichillá Quiacaín: Tejiendo El Paisaje (video installation). Museum of Contemporary Art Santa Barbara, 12th February – 2nd April 2023.
International Recognition
In 2024, MGLC Švicarija Art Museum, Ljubljana, Slovenia, opened The Offering. Curated by Yasmín Martín Vodopivec, this exhibition explored how Antonio Pichillá connects Mayan rituals and customs that have long remained hidden through appropriation, performativity, and abstraction. Through this, the artist reveals the value of ancestral knowledge as a symbol of resistance and the dignity of one’s identity.
In 2023, Antonio Pichillá Quiacaín: Tejiendo El Paisaje, a video installation by the artist was exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary Art Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, USA. The same year, Antonio Pichillá participated in the 22nd Biennial of Sesc_Videobrasil – Memory is an Editing Station. As well as exhibiting artworks at Sesc_Videobrasil, Antonio Pichillá participated in a biennial talk entitled Land, Rights and Indigenous Technologies. Pichillá’s work was featured in the Communicating Vessels exhibition at the Museo Reina Sofía, Madrid, Spain, which opened in 2021.
About Antonio Pichillá Quiacaín
Born in San Pedro La Laguna, Guatemala, Pichillá’s work has been exhibited at major institutions worldwide, including Tate Modern, Barbican, Museo Reina Sofía, and Palais de Tokyo, among others. His works are part of several prestigious permanent collections, including those of Tate Modern, Museo Reina Sofía, and Denver Art Museum.
