Born in Mexico City, Gerardo Bravo is a multidisciplinary artist whose work spans painting, sculpture, and installation. He divides his time between Washington D.C. and his native city. Studied at Mexico City’s Academia Nacional de Artes de San Carlos UNAM. (1994–1999), he began his career as a painter, exploring the human condition.
In 1996, he presented his first solo exhibition, “Voices of the Spirit”, in Oaxaca, Mexico. By 2003, the Mexican government featured his work in Ottawa, Miami, and San Francisco. The loss of his mother in 2006 marked a pivotal moment in his practice, leading him to expand into installations and socially engaged works addressing environmental and humanitarian themes—a series he titled "Ofrendas a mi Madre". His first installation debuted at Mexico City’s Anahuacalli Diego Rivera Museum in 2007. That same year, he collaborated with the World Bank to create imagery for an avian flu awareness campaign.
In 2010, his installation “Ofrendas a 72 Migrantes” was exhibited at the Regional Museum of Azcapotzalco. Following Mexico’s wave of disappearances in 2014, he incorporated ceramics into his practice, creating the “Empty Urns” series. This project later merged with his “Fossils” series, where he integrated copper wire to emphasize the enduring traces that define our contemporary world—deepening his meditation on memory, grief, and resilience.
His interest in architecture and spatial design led him to build a private residence in 2003, featured in Architectural Digest (2006).
Through abstract and organic forms, Bravo’s oil paintings—often rendered in dark tones—evoke introspection and solemnity. His work invites viewers to reflect on the connections between personal and collective experiences, as well as humanity’s relationship with the environment. Functioning as a bridge between past and present (viewed from an imagined future), his art contemplates the fragility of existence, the persistence of memory, and the emotional imprints that shape our shared humanity.
Bravo’s work has been exhibited at prominent institutions, including the Anahuacalli Museum (Mexico City), the Mexican Cultural Institutes (Ottawa, San Francisco, Miami), and the Rufino Tamayo Contemporary Art Museum (VIII Rufino Tamayo Biennial). His pieces belong to public and private collections worldwide, such as the World Bank (Washington D.C.), the Mexican Embassy in Berlin, the Museum of Oaxacan Painters, the Iberoamerican University (Mexico City), and the International Bank of Miami, Florida.
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Born in México City
Working between Mexico City and Washington DC.
Education and training:
2023-1: Curatorship, museography and exhibition management, UNAM, Mexico City.
2014 - 2015: Ceramics, with Master Alberto Díaz de Cossio, Mexico City.
1996 -1998: Painting techniques, with Master artist Luis Nishizawa, Toluca Mexico.
1998: Fresco painting workshop, Diego Rivera mural museum, Mexico City.
1994 -1999: San Carlos national academy of arts UNAM. Mexico City
Selected solo exhibitions:
2010 "Installation Offering to 72 migrants”, Azcapotzalco Regional Museum, México City.
2007 "Ofrendas a mi Madre, Calligraphic Privitivism”, Diego Rivera Anahuacalli
Museum, México City.
"Ofrendas a mi Madre, Calligraphic Privitivism", Heineman Myers Gallery,
Bethesda Maryland.
"Mandalas", Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library, Washington D.C.
2006 "The psalms, Calligraphic Privitivism", Cultural Institute of Mexico San Francisco,
U.S.A.
"The psalms, Calligraphic Privitivism", Cultural Institute of Mexico, Miami, FL, U.S.A.
2005 "The psalms, Calligraphic Privitivism", SCA. UNAM. Ottawa, Canada.
2004 "Guna mythology" Lithograph, Embassy of Panama, Mexico City.
2003 "Guna mythology" Lithograph, Union congress in Mexico City.
2002 "Guna mythology" Lithograph, Miguel Cabrera Gallery, Oaxaca City, Mexico.
1996 "Voices of the spirit" Oaxacan Institute of Cultures, Oaxaca City, Mexico.
Selected group exhibitions:
2024 “Art of memory” Brain Bridge Lab art contest, University of Chicago, IL. U.S.A.
2009 " 2009 SOMAAP Salon" Mexican Authors Society of the Arts, SGC of IP.
Exhibition hall Siglo XX1 Medical Center, Mexico City.
2004 “Master Leo Acosta Lithography workshop”, San Carlos Academy gallery, UNAM,
Mexico City.
2003 "Artists in residence" Museum of Mexico City, Museum, México City.
1998 “Man; figure, function and mystery” San Carlos Academy gallery, UNAM, México
City.
1996 “VIII Rufino Tamayo Biennial”, Rufino Tamayo Museum, México City.
1989 “Selected works national painting contest” French Alliance, Mexico City.
Selected collections:
Art Center, Nuevo León City, Monterrey. México.
Iberoamerican University, Santa Fe campus, México City
International Bank of Miami, Miami FL. U.S.A.
Mexican Embassy, Berlin Germany.
Museum of Oaxacan painters, Oaxaca City, Mexico.
Panamá Embassy, México City.
The world Bank, Washington D.C. U.S.A.
Gerardo Bravo features in various national and international private collections.
Selected awards, residencies & grants.
2022 Luxemburg art prize, (Recognition of high artistic quality), The Pinacotheque, private museum. 7 Rue Michel Rodange 2430 Luxembourg, Luxemburg.
1996 Rufino Tamayo VIII Biennial, (Selected art work), International contemporary art museum Rufino Tamayo, México City.
1989 National art contest (Selected work) Alliance Francaise, Mexico, commemoration for the bicentennial of the French Revolution, Mexico City.
Selected publications & press.
Espinosa Ricardo, "Gerardo Bravo exhibits pictorial work" El Sol de México newspaper, society section, August 5, 2007. p. 4D
Rolando Diez Laurini, "Medieval Influence", 10 talented Mexican architects, Architectural Digest Mexico magazine, volume 7, November 2006, p. 74-79.
Taracena Berta, "Aesthetics of Mexican Art in time" Thought and work, Chapter VII, Editorial los peñascales, S.A de C.V. 2006, p.311.
Tibol Raquel, “Rufino Tamayo VIII Biennial catalogue” International contemporary art museum Rufino Tamayo, 1996, p.21
Professional contributions:
2024 Apexart juror of international exhibition proposals.
2023 Exhibition curatorial team, “Gunadule. Women, textile cartographies and territorial knowledge,” UNAM/ National Museum of World Cultures in Mexico City.
2003-2006 Design and construction country family house in Mexico City.
2003 Showrooms design for Futon Tanoshii furniture stores in Mexico City.