Julia López
1936
Mexican artist Julia Lopez is now a world-renowned painter, but she very nearly didn’t discover her talent at all. She grew up as a farm labourer in rural Mexico and found work as a maid after moving to Mexico City. But one day her life changed when she was scouted by the famous artist Frida Kahlo to become a model. It wasn’t long before she picked up the paintbrush herself.
She is a Mexican painter whose works depict her childhood home in the Costa Chica region of Guerrero state. She was born in a small farming village but left early for Acapulco and Mexico City to find a better life. In the capital, she was hired as a model for artists at the Escuela Nacional de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado “La Esmeralda” and as such became part of the circle of notable artists of that time. Their influence encouraged her to draw and paint, with Carlos Orozco Romero discouraging her from formal instruction so as to not destroy her style.
She began exhibiting in 1958 and since then has exhibited individually and collectively in Mexico, the United States, and Europe. Her work has been recognized with awards and membership in the Salón de la Plástica Mexicana.
López’s experience at La Esmeralda influenced her themes but the development of her artistic style was self-taught. She is of the age of the Generación de la Ruptura but her work is considered part of the Mexican muralism movement.
Most of her work relates to her experiences growing up, with dark-skinned figures, almost always female, in flowery clothes in tropical settings. Her work has been described as having an indigenous quality as well as exalting the simple pleasures of life. Rafael Coronel stated that “her works are not premeditated, they are born. They deny symbols, but translate legends.” He also stated that while Kahlo painted tragedy, López paints paradise