ARTIST STATEMENT

Mesoamerican myths, anthropophagy, death, sacrifice, and metaphysics have been prominent in my work’s process and concept. I’m interested in how these ideas manifest themselves in contemporary culture through a globalized capitalism and black market that seem to have no division, but rather a grey fog between them. I try to capture this in my work through a dysfunctional harmony that brings conflicting ideas together, creating a disjunctive narrative that allows me to blur the lines between fiction and reality. I want each form I’ve created in an artwork to take on a mythical quality and to become perpetuated, letting each arrangement become an independent figure with its own identity, then force them to collide and acknowledge their differences. It’s as if the different parts of the paintings say, “You stay away from me and I’ll keep away from you, but if we must come to the point of punches and blows, then let the best man win.”

BIOGRAPHY

Born in Santa Barbara,California. Michael León has Exhibited in Los Angeles,New York City, and Chicago. He received his Bachelors in Studio art from San Francisco State University in 2008 and his Masters of Fine Art in Painting at Rhode Island School of Design. He lives and works in Los Angeles, CA