FRANCISCO TOLEDO
b. 1940
d. 2019
Mexico

Francisco Toledo was born in 1940 in the town of Juchitan in the state of Oaxaca in Mexico. He attended the Benito Juarez Autonomous University to pursue his studies in art and later at the Taller Libre de Gabado in Mexico City, where he met painter Rufino Tamayo. From 1960 to 1965 Toledo lived in Paris, where he mostly painted in the studio of Stanley William Hayter and had the opportunity to exhibit his work. Toledos’ work is associated with themes that are related to the sacred and the magical. His work is inspired by rituals and fables and is deeply penetrated with the sacred conception of the universe. With his return to Mexico in 1965, he became part of an emergent group of artist called “La Ruptura.” Also called the “Generacion de la Ruptura” (Breakaway Generation), the group was born as a reaction to move forward from the established Mexican School of Painting, most commonly associated with the Mexican muralists. Mexican artists such as Jose Luis Cuevas, Vicente Rojo, Rodolfo Nieto, Pedro Coronel and Manuel Felguerez composed the group. Toledo additionally became a important leader for cultural institution in Mexico. With the rise of his success, Toledo invested his earnings from his sales to contribute to the cultural development and preservation of Oaxaca.  Till this day Toledo continues to play a prominent role in the development of cultural institutions and museums throughout Mexico.