LandEscapeAnniversary EditionC o n t e m p o r a r yART A r t R e v i e wJim WoodsonJIM WOODSONANTONIO MUÑIZLORNA RITZTOM BRICENICOLA HILLJAIO DOS ANJOSTHÉRÈSE LYNCHISABEL SEILERCHRIS ZUBER
SUMMARYChris ZuberUSAC o n t e m p o r a r y A r t R e v i e wUSASpecial IssueJaio DosAnjosPortugalLand scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWNicola HillUnited KingdomI am a 57-year-old emergingartist – you may think that’s abit late to emerge but why not?I find art totally absorbs mymind as I try to capture alikeness of a famous person,connect emotionally to portraya family member orexperiment with differentmedia to depict a landscape. Iam delighted that something Iturned to for my mental healthhas now become a major partof my life, combined withcreative and non-fictionwriting.I loved art as a youngster butwas discouraged fromcontinuing beyond the secondyear of senior school – eventhough I came third in the endof year competition! I was toldit wasn’t academic enough andwould take up too much time.There’s a ritualistic rhythm tomy process—rooted deep in thepsyche and spirit. I createabstract, autonomic landscapesshaped by mythologies likeshamanism, astrology, esotericthought, and dreamwork. Fire isa central element in mypractice. With smoke, I drawskeletal maps—burningoutdated versions of myself andrevealing new pathwaysthrough memory, emotion, andtransformation. The synergybetween smoke, movement,and color forms the muscle ofmy work. Each layer holds itsown sense of time and space.Every painting becomes ametaphoric terrain—whereghosts, flesh, dreams, andfantasies converge. These piecesaren’t fixed; they’re portals.Each one offers a glimpse intoinfinite, coexisting worlds.After growing up and living inthe desert the seasons are subtlewith varying levels of brown andlarge bright blue skies. Oregonand Washington is a playgroundof ever changing seasons ofmoss filled forests, ferns andtrees of lush greens, yellows andvarying colors. The sky can befilled with white fluffy clouds ormoody and dark the nextmoment. For this collection Ihave gathered photos fromCalifornia, Oregon, Washingtonand my more recent trip toFrance. The picture from frozenlake in California was taken over24 years ago and still today holdsup as a great photograph.Photographs will show thepassage of time and the impactwe as humans have on the worldaround us. It is up to us asphotographers and artists tocapture what is beautiful nowand help preserve the history ofwhat was. A flower will onlybloom that way one time forinstance.Antonio MuñizUSAMy painting is an act of faith. Isearch for that which I have notyet experienced but can feel.Painting is a solitary way of life,but I am steadfast to live the lifeI most want to live. When Imake a painting breakthrough, Iam exhilarated andaccomplished, which gives mylife meaning. I share myinspiration with everyonearound me. I tightly stretch myown canvases and glue them inthe ol’ Renaissance method. Ithen construct frames. Ideascome from outside of myselfand are the ones I trust most,rather than my willfully makingdecisions. How ideas connect tothe whole of the painting iswhat makes the painting. I havean incessant curiosity to staypresent in the moment ofseeing. I feel the right decisionsrise up from my feet through mybody to my hands placing paint.Jorge Rojas Naima Karim Cécile Filipe\"My art aims to impress withquality and attention to detail andto stand out with its unique style.\"I center my art on the harmoniousrelationship between humans andnature.”Jaio Dos Anjos is an abstract artistliving in Germany. She was born inAngola as a Portuguese citizen andhad to flee at the age of 6 toSouth Africa, living in a refugeecamp and had been resettled after2 years to Portugal. She employsacrylics to convey her abstractstyle, characterized by vibrantcolors and intricate details. JaioDos Anjos is a self-taught artistwho couldn't attend art schooldue to financial constraints. Shehoned her skills by studying artbooks and watching relatedprograms. Through trial andexperimentation, she hasprogressed to her current level ofexpertise. Her choice of mediumsincludes paper, canvas, andsynthetic plates.Lorna Ritz The Skinning of the Eel, by Christine Comau, exhibition, 2023 photo by Vincent Drouin The Enchanting Pool - K. MavridouJim WoodsonThroughout his career,Woodson’s art evolved fromspare landscapes influenced byhis time in California toimaginative and complexcompositions that oftenmerged fantastical architecturalforms with natural settings. Hiswork is deeply inspired by thehigh desert terrain of Texas andNew Mexico, particularly thearea around Abiquiú, NewMexico, which he first visited inthe late 1980s.Enchanted by its transcendentbeauty and mystical qualities,Woodson eventually built ahome there and divides his timebetween Abiquiú and FortWorth, Texas. The region’s vividcolors, exposed geologicallayers and sense of timelessnesshave become central themes inhis paintings.USA
Special IssueSpecial thanks to Miya Ando, Juerg Luedi, Urte Beyer, BethKrensky, Rudiger Fischer, Lisa Birke, Haylee Lenkey, MartinGantman, Ariane Littman, Max Epstein, Nicolas Vionnet, SapirKesem Leary, Greg Condon, Jasper Van Loon, Alexandre Dang,Christian Gastaldi, Larry Cwik, Michael Nelson, Dana Taylor,Michael Sweeney, Colette Hosmer, Melissa Moffat, MarindaScaramanga and Artemis Herber.SUMMARY Land scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWUnited KingdomReimagining the rich visuallanguage of our Celtic ancestors,Lewis Deeney breathes new lifeinto ancient Celtic designs with hisinnovative creative processconsisting of vibrant colours,interconnected laser-cut shapesand expressive, abstract painting.A journey through time, bridgingthe gap between past and present,Deeney's work offers aregeneration of our collectivehistory and the ancestral wisdomlocked within it.With no writtenaccount of what they believed, wecan only understand the world ofour Celtic ancestors through theirvisual imagery, and what wediscover is a rich, diverse culturewith a nature-based spirituality.Living in harmony with nature wasa way of life that was eradicated bythe colonial expansion withinBritain.432Jim Woodsonlives and works in the USAAntonio Muñizlives and works in the USAChris Zuberlives and works in the USANicola Hilllives and works in the United KingdomLorna Ritzlives and works in Massachussets, USATom Bricelives and works in Quebec, QC, CanadaJaio DosAnjoslives and works in GermanyIsabel Seilerlives and works in New York city, USALewis Deeneylives and works in London, United Kingdom82118158162186204214I grew up in a creativehousehold in a remote part ofAberdeenshire.My Dad was often paintingportraits or creating bizarresculptures, and it seemed verynatural for me to do the same.The walls of our home werefilled with a collection ofworks by both local andinternational artists.My artistic development tookan interesting turn when,having been given the book‘Street Logos’ by TristanManco, I was inspired by thelikes of Shepard Fairey andD*Face, both of whom I waslucky enough to work withand be tutored by at theheight of their popularity.I love adventure.Tom BriceUnited KingdomJoe O’BrienUSAIsabel SeilerMy digital paintings areparticularly influenced by storytelling and the ability to implyso much with a singular image.Finding the importance in themundane and how much effectlittle things are to a biggerpicture. I show the beauty andsignificance of everydayimages.The average is incrediblyimpactful when you thinkabout it, which is the purposeof my art. I find that most of myinspiration comes from myeveryday life and experienceswanting to express a feelingmetaphorically or otherwise. What a perfect world - Olga MarkariLewis Deeney
Hello Jim, and welcome to LandEscape.Before starting to elaborate about yourartistic production, we would like to inviteour readers to visithttps://www.jimwoodsonart.com in order togain a broad understanding of your artisticproduction. We would like to begin thisinterview with a couple of questions aboutyour background. You hold a Bachelor of FineArts in Painting from Texas ChristianUniversity, and you later nurtured youreducation with a Master of Fine Arts inPainting from the University of Texas atAustin. How did your formative yearsinfluence your evolution as an artist?Moreover, how does your teaching practiceinfluence or enrich your approach to painting?Born in 1941 in Waco, Texas, Woodson grew up in a modest household where his fatherworked as a broom-maker and his mother as a school secretary. He was the first in hisfamily to pursue higher education, and found inspiration through instructors such as JoeFarrell Hobbs to pursue a life in art-making.Throughout his career, Woodson’s art evolved from spare landscapes influenced by his timein California to imaginative and complex compositions that often merged fantasticalarchitectural forms with natural settings. His work is deeply inspired by the high desertterrain of Texas and New Mexico, particularly the area around Abiquiú, New Mexico,which he first visited in the late 1980s. Enchanted by its transcendent beauty and mysticalqualities, Woodson eventually built a home there and divides his time between Abiquiú andFort Worth, Texas. The region’s vivid colors, exposed geological layers and sense oftimelessness have become central themes in his paintings.An interview by Josh Ryder, curatorand Melissa C. Hilborn, [email protected] scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLandEscape meetsJim Woodson@jimwoodsonart
Jim Woodson: I drew from an early age, butit was only after I entered college that Ibegan to understand what art really was.After some attempts at so-calledcommercial art, I gravitated to the paintingstudios after being influenced by some rolemodels. As my career developed, I beganteaching painting and drawing at TexasChristian University, my alma mater, andtaught at the university for nearly fourdecades. My teaching experience influencedmy approach to painting, because in orderto communicate to my students, I had todevelop an inner dialogue, which translatedinto my approach to my work.Your artistic production has impressed usin the way it engages the viewer, activelyrefusing to offer merely decorativelandscape imagery. The juxtaposition ofgestural, painterly marks with traditionalrendering creates a dynamic viewingexperience that demands attention andparticipation. By maintaining thesetensions rather than resolving them, youare honestly addressing how we perceivespace in contemporary experience—asprocess rather than a fixed scene. Couldyou walk us through your creative processin more detail?Jim Woodson: My paintings are an attemptto bring inner (memory) and outer(perception) together. I want to juxtaposemy inner world onto the outer one. Whenone is in a particular landscape, their interiorscapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special Edition
Jim Woodson scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLandSurrounded Floating Into Onto, 2025. oil on canvas, 24” x 36” (catalog no. 25003)
world doesn't shut down. Any individual’sperception of that landscape is colored bymemory, dreams, imagination and fantasy.Perception is the present, memory is fromthe past and imagination is a pull from thefuture.scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special EditionHonored Ground Memory, 2025. oil on canvas, 36” x 36” (catalog no. 25002)
By the contextual placement or overlay ofinner and outer, I attempt to convey myown thoughts about the nature ofimagination: to achieve a sense of theimagination’s movement (tempo)Jim Woodson scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLandSurrounding Animating Emergent, 2025. oil on canvas, 47” x 44.75” (catalog no. 25004)
Persistent Liminal Transitions, 2025. oil on canvas, 30\" x 48” (catalog no. 20014)
scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special EditionSimultaneous Partially Restrained Mediations, 2025. oil on canvas, 36” x 48” (catalog no. 20013)
Jim Woodson scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLandagainst a relatively unchanging environment(duration).I hope to create a tension between aseemingly static desert landscape and thegesture of mark-making. Presenting aquestion for the viewer to consider: What dothey make of what is going on? It transformsthe viewer, hopefully, into a participant.There’s no resolution to the question, onlytheir reaction. It’s a lot to ask, but I thinkmost good art does just that.In a painting like Honored Ground Memory,you're using these soft, almost otherworldlycolors that feel very dreamlike, even thoughyou're starting with the landscape of thehigh desert, which is quite stark and intensein real life. How do you transition from whatyou're actually seeing out there to thesequieter, more suggestive colors on thecanvas?Jim Woodson: When I transitioned from theBig Bend to the New Mexico paintings, thebase palette changed, as the colors in NewMexico were much more vibrant.I have an interest in trying to find a spacebetween representing an image and theactivity of mark-making, so that a paintingexists as a spatial illusion (of a landscape)while, at the same time, it exists as anexpressionistic autonomous activity. I’mtrying to depict a memory, a trace ofsomething that happened, literally on the
scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special Editioncanvas, altered and partially painted out.There is a tension between the literalness ofits having been there and being there as apart of the illusion of the landscape.We're particularly struck by your focus onmovement and constant change, a visualquality that is particularly evident in DimlyArising Comprehended. How do you createthat sense of things shifting when themedium itself is totally static?Jim Woodson: When you are in the desert,you know intellectually that things in thelandscape are changing, but mainly there is asense of stillness—I want to communicate asense of movement within that stillness. Iwant my landscapes to feel like a verb ratherthan a noun.Time is now (the eternal present); space iswhere we exist. Both are internal andexternal simultaneously. Our internalperceptions continue no matter what theexternal observable reality. My workattempts to hold together both realities. Itsituates in an external space (a high desertlandscape) and an internal one of reflection,dream, memory and fantasy. One realitysuperimposed on the other. Time is indicatedin the first situation by the movement of lightacross the landscape (space), turning nightinto day. In the other by a stream ofconsciousness (knowledge)—drawing andmark-making that evolves over time. Thoughthe creation of a painting unfolds in time, theexperiencing of it by the viewer is one ofimmediacy (an all at once). I hope, onreflection, that the experiencing mirrorsmore closely that of the creation.Your titles frequently draw from TarthangTulku's Time, Space, Knowledge—can youwalk us through how this philosophicalInto Onto Surrounded, 2025. oil on canvas, 15” x 30” (ca
framework manifests in your studiopractice? Are these three elementssomething you consciouslychoreograph, or do they emerge moreintuitively?Jim Woodson: Time, Space andKnowledge arose from a study groupthat Barbara Moore, my life partner, workedwith.My paintings are about time and space, butthey require a viewer to perceive them toacknowledge them.The process of naming is problematic. I wouldlike to have my titles extend the imageJim Woodson scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLandtalog no. 25005)
Dimly Arising Comprehended, 2025. oil on canvas, 48” x 72” (catalog no. 20015)
without reductively explaining anything.Though many early works are quite literallythe name after the place that is theinspiration for the work. Sometimes the titleof a painting will come during the making ofit. The places in my paintings represent anaspect of time—that of duration—as thehigh deserts of Texas and New Mexicoseem enduring and unchanging. The otherpart of the titles are more like activitiesrepresenting another aspect of time—thatof tempo. Tempo is more like the activitiesof our lives.After painting a number of paintings, Iperused a dictionary for Time, Space andscapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special EditionOnto Into Surrounded, 2025. oil on canvas, 15” x 30” (catalog no. 25009)
Knowledge words, which I wrote down indifferent configurations and intuitively appliedto paintings. I looked for words that had somerapport with the paintings. I should say, insteadof making one list, I made three, as I ordered thewords in columns of adjectives, verbs and nouns.I utilized some words more than once indifferent configurations. In spite of thisseemingly random procedure, the names arespecific to the paintings. Looking at thepaintings and words, I combined them in a waythat made a kind of sense to me. This process oftitling somewhat reflects the notions of time inthe paintings. The noun becomes like the place,holding still like duration, while the adjectivesand the verbs, by their activity, are like tempo.In the studio, I gather a group of paintings andtry to find combinations that seem to fit. I stress“seem to fit” because they are always separate.In my mind, they represent a kind of poetry—ametaphor of likenesses—parallel to thepaintings.The high desert terrains of Texas and NewMexico are your primary subject matter, andyou keep returning to them. What is it aboutthese places specifically—is it the light, theemptiness, the heat? What keeps pulling youback there?Jim Woodson: I’ve been drawn to the highdeserts since I was a child, driving with myparents through New Mexico and Arizona onthe way to visit relatives in California. After all,historically, when seekers sought inspiration,they went to the desert. Deserts call for quietintrospection.The light, especially in New Mexico, is much likewhat drew the Impressionists to the South ofFrance. It is bright and active.After all, New Mexico is the Land ofEnchantment and the light is part of thatenchantment.Jim Woodson scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand
scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special EditionWe're really taken with how Persistent LiminalTransitions (pages 10 and 11) splits betweenthat relatively calm mountain range in thebackground and the almost chaotic energy ofthe vineyard in front. It's like two differentpaintings happening at once—one descriptive,one nearly abstract. Do you consciously set upthat tension between stability and turbulence,or does it just emerge as you're workingthrough the layers?Jim Woodson: I’m interested in callingattention to the act of painting, as well as tohow one understands visual conventions, bycombining self-referential marks and formswith more traditional rendering. I hope thatthese juxtapositions enliven the surface andcreate an ambiguous space that causes theviewer to question his/her notions aboutperceptional space.I would like to provide the viewer with choicesthat lie between dualities like cultural andnatural, perspectival and encompassed, nearand far, representational and abstract, mythictime and geologic time, movement andstillness, order and chaos.The \"temporal flux\" in your work suggests aninterest in time beyond the present moment.Are you painting the memory of the past, theobservation of the present, and theanticipation of future erosion and change, allat once?
Jim Woodson scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLandAdvancing Retreating Emanations, 2023. oil on canvas, 36” x 48” (catalog no. 23026)
Land scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWSpecial EditionAnimating Realized Anomalies, 2023. oil on canvas, 36” x 48” (catalog no. 23028)
Jim Woodson scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLandJim Woodson: Time exists as past, presentand future. A quote that I often refer to isfrom Rudolf Arnheim, an author who haswritten a number of books on art andpsychology:“Memory images serve to identify,interpret and supplement perception.No borderline separates a purelyperceptional image-if such there isfrom one completed by memory.”I paint in the present with recollections fromthe past and anticipation from the future.Perception is the present, memory is fromthe past and imagination is a pull from thefuture. It is in this sense, that by addressingthe duration of a desert landscape with itsseeming unchanging nature and marks thatreflect tempo, l hope to hold together innerand outer, past, present and future.In keeping with these notions, I would like toattempt to make a distinction betweenthought and thinking. The dictionary makesfew distinctions between the two words,often using them interchangeably—but onedefinition of thought seems especiallyhelpful here: \"thought is the result ofthinking.”This definition makes thinking an activity,while thought is something from the past—as in, \"I thought something.”Thinking immediately becomes thought. Thepresent immediately becomes the past.
scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special EditionIn the act of painting, I believe that one\"thinks\" at the end of one's arm—withone's body and mind in conjunction as awhole enterprise. This is the present—whatRudolf Steiner, a philosopher, scholar,scientist and founder of Anthroposophy,calls \"Living thinking.”In painting, if one thinks and thinkingbecomes thought before it is acted on, thepainting is done from the past (even if fromthe immediate past). This gives the brain (inthis case the thinking organ) predominance,leaving out the body.It seems to me that this inability todistinguish between thinking and thought isone of the central problems of painting andconsciousness. We mistake thought forthinking. To us it seems quite rational—wemistake our recent past for the present.Consider: a photograph often seems morereal, in a certain sense, than the world itrepresents, because it holds still for ourexamination, frozen in the past. We feelthat we understand something, findmeaning, when we stop motion. But the realworld is not like that. It is constantlychanging—evolving—in flux. It is transitoryand active. It is constantly in the present. Itis hard to get a \"handle\" on. We sense (withour senses) its activity, but to bring it intofocus we have to make it hold still bybringing it into the past.I believe in the primacy of the art object. It is inthe making or in the process of making, andpossibly in the process of viewing it, that liesour best hope of learning to experience thepresent.You layer what you call \"outer\" desertEnfolded Simultaneous Unions Embedded, 2020. oil on ca
Jim Woodson scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLandlandscapes with \"inner\" dreamscapes. Whenyou're working, how do you decide whatstays real and what gets pushed into thatdream territory?Jim Woodson: If you were my student, Iwould tell you that making a painting is likehaving a conversation. It is a give and take:one begins the conversation, then thepainting speaks and one must use care tohear. This conversation has a beginning thatevolves and grows into something new,unforeseen by the instigator. A conversationrather than a monologue, where an idea atnvas, 24” x 48” (catalog no. 20013)
the beginning arrives at the end virtuallyintact. A monologue doesn't changeanything for the speaker. There is noevolution, no development.The monologist discovers nothing new andremains unchanged throughout theexperience. l believe that for the viewerwilling to invest the effort, a similarconversation (with the work) takes place,possibly with similar results.In my paintings I hope to establish a systemof tensions: cultural and natural, near andPotential Simultaneous Linear Infusions, 2020. oil on canvas, 24” x 48 (catalog no. 20019)Land scape Special EditionCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW
far, representational and abstract, movementand stillness, order and chaos. Those tensionscome from that conversation that I have withthe painting, in which I pose a question and geta response. That conversation continuesthroughout until the work is completed,telling me what stays and what goes.You use words like \"energetic\" and\"muscular\" to describe your paintings. Areyou thinking about your own physicalgestures when you paint, or is that moreabout the final effect?Jim Woodson: At times I feel as if I’mdirecting an orchestra. I’m moving thingshere and there so there is energy andgesture in the act of painting.In my paintings, I’m interested in a spacethat lies between image and gesture—where a painting can function as a spatialillusion while simultaneously asserting itsown presence as an autonomous, expressiveactivity.For me, painting is a kind of activethinking—intuitive and always in process. AsGoethe suggested, to truly understand therelationship between human thought andthe external world, we must engage notwith finished objects, but with their cominginto being. My work tries to embody thatstate—resisting finality, inviting ongoinginterpretation.Although the painting unfolds through timeas I create it, the viewer encounters it all atonce. I hope, though, that reflection on thework invites an experience that echoes theact of making it—gradual, exploratory,temporal.Given your extensive exhibition historyJim Woodson scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand
Jim Woodson, 2025.Pictured with Continuous Transitioning Premonitory Convergences, 2017. oil on canvas, 60” x 288” (catalog no. 170
18)
scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special Edition—over 30 solo shows and 50+ groupexhibitions across the U.S. andinternationally—you've had sustainedinteraction with audiences in physicalgallery spaces. How do you see therelationship between traditional physicalexhibitions and the increasingly disruptiveonline presence evolving? Has the wayviewers encounter and engage with yourwork through digital platforms changedyour thinking about how the paintingscommunicate, or about the kind of dialogueyou hope to establish with your audience?Jim Woodson: Digital platforms do notcommunicate my paintings as well, as theyare over-painted and the texture iscomplicated and rough to the touch.You don’t want to brush up against one. Ithink if a participant (viewer) hasexperienced my work physically, thenperhaps something could be understoodfrom digital images.We have sincerely enjoyed hearing about allthe different directions your work takes,and before we wrap up, we want to thankyou for taking the time to talk with us andshare your thinking, Jim. What are youworking on right now, and what's next—are there new ideas or directions you arelooking to push into?Jim Woodson: I try to begin each painting ina different way. A new approachencourages me to rush to finish eachpainting, as I’m anxious to see what it willturn out to be.Each painting is a different discussion. I talkto the painting, it speaks back, and wecontinue on until it’s finished. I will continueto work with the juxtaposition of thelandscape and interior dialogue at least forthe near future. Ideas don’t really enter intomy process as such.I would like to include the following, as itrelates to this.Short Statements on Painting (in noparticular order):A little bit of Knowledge spoils whatcan be discovered.Remember less, Explore more.Learn then forget, then look anddiscover.Filter knowing at the end of the brush.Dead Known vs Living Knowing.Ideas die if not transformed oruntransformed ideas die.Move thought into thinking.Known is past, Knowledge is now.The known limits the finding out.An interview by Josh Ryder, curatorand Melissa C. Hilborn, [email protected] little bit of Knowledge spoils what can be discovered.Remember less, Explore more.Learn then forget, then look and discover.Filter knowing at the end of the brush.Dead Known vs Living Knowing.Ideas die if not transformed or untransformed ideas die.Move thought into thinking.Known is past, Knowledge is now.The known limits the finding out.
Jim Woodson scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLandManifesting Temporal Inclusion Revised, 2017. oil on canvas, 60” x 48”
Hello Antonio and welcome toLandEscape. Before elaborating on yourartistic production, we would like toinvite our readers to visithttps://antoniomuniz-art.com to gain adeeper understanding of your work. Wewould like to start this interview with acouple of questions about yourbackground. You have solid formaltraining in architecture, and yougraduated from the New School ofArchitecture in San Diego. How did yourformative years influence your evolutionas an artist? Moreover, how do thecultural foundations of your Mexicanroots, along with your mentorship byRodrigo Pimentel, address the direction ofyour current artistic research?Antonio Muñiz: My background inarchitecture, particularly my education atThere’s a ritualistic rhythm to my process—rooted deep in the psyche and spirit. I createabstract, autonomic landscapes shaped by mythologies like shamanism, astrology, esotericthought, and dreamwork.Fire is a central element in my practice. With smoke, I draw skeletal maps—burning outdatedversions of myself and revealing new pathways through memory, emotion, and transformation.The synergy between smoke, movement, and color forms the muscle of my work. Each layerholds its own sense of time and space. Every painting becomes a metaphoric terrain—whereghosts, flesh, dreams, and fantasies converge. These pieces aren’t fixed; they’re portals. Eachone offers a glimpse into infinite, coexisting worlds.An interview by Josh Ryder, curatorand Melissa C. Hilborn, [email protected] scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLandEscape meetsAntonio Muñiz@antoniomuniz_art/
the New School of Architecture in SanDiego, has had a profound impact on howI approach art.Architecture taught me to see space notjust as something functional, but assomething emotional and symbolic. Overtime, I developed an urge to break awayfrom the traditional concept of space assomething confined by walls or definedby utility. Emotionally, I felt compelled tomove beyond the boundaries that givebirth to space — to question the veryscapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special EditionHow I Found My WingsFumage, Spray Paint, Acrylic, Charcoal and Oil on Canvas64\"x156\", 2025
frameworks that contain us, bothphysically and psychologically. This desireto explore the intangible aspects ofspace has deeply influenced the way Ithink about form, structure, andproportion, and those concepts havenaturally transitioned into my visual artpractice. In many ways, the rigor anddiscipline of architectural design laid thegroundwork for how I constructcompositions and approach materials —but my art allows me to unbuild as muchAntonio Muñiz scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand
JoyrideFumage and Oil on Corrugated Plastic36\" x 24\"2021
as build, to blur the lines betweenstructure and emotion.Although I was born and raised inMexico, my cultural background doesn'talways show up in the way people mightexpect — not in the vibrant colors orintricate patterns often associated withMexican art. What has truly shaped mywork is something deeper — the quiet,powerful connection to storytelling,spirituality, and nature that I grew upwith. Mexican culture carries a rich oraltradition, where myth, ritual, andmemory aren’t separate from daily lifebut are woven into everything I do. It'sthis narrative depth — the ability toscapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special EditionBrainstorming with The HeavensFumage and Oil on Canvas, 38x48, 2013
Antonio Muñiz scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLandFountain of LifeFumage, Acrylic, Charcoal and Oil on Canvas78” x 64”2023
scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special EditionEndless JoyFumage, Enamel and Oil on Canvas72\" x 58\"2018
Antonio Muñiz scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLandconvey profound emotional and spiritualtruths through symbols — that has stayedwith me and influences how I approachmy art. I'm drawn to the spaces where thevisible and invisible meet, where thephysical world brushes against themetaphysical.Staying connected to my roots gives me asense of continuity — like I’m part of astory much larger than myself, one thatstretches back long before I was born andwill continue long after. That sense ofbelonging — to something bigger,whether it’s ancestral memory, spiritualtradition, or the rhythms of nature I grewup with — is what grounds me. But mycreative process isn’t just about holdingon; it’s also about confronting andrethinking the stories that have shapedme. Understanding my roots meansknowing which stories empower mygrowth and which ones I need to let go of.There’s a tension in that — betweenhonoring where I come from and pushingagainst the limitations those stories canimpose. Even as I explore contemporaryforms and ideas, that connection to mylineage remains alive — not as somethingstatic, but as a source of both groundingand transformation.The influence of Rodrigo Pimentel hasbeen incredibly significant in my journey.His work showed me how contemporaryart can remain rooted in tradition whilealso pushing boundaries and exploringnew possibilities. But what truly struck meabout Rodrigo’s approach wasn’t just histechnical mastery; it was his conceptualdepth. He encouraged me to take risks —to question not only what I wanted tosay, but how I wanted to say it. Hismentorship didn’t just teach me to thinkcritically; it also opened me upemotionally. Rodrigo’s guidance createdspace for me to feel things more deeply,and this emotional freedom then foundits way onto the canvas. It wasn’t aboutrepresentation or figuration, but abouttransferring the raw, unspoken energy ofthose feelings into my work.But my work is not solely aboutremembering the past — it’s aboutunderstanding it, honoring it, and thenbreaking free from it. Each piece I createis a journey of discovery, a process ofletting go of what is necessary and, indoing so, stepping into a new landscape.I embrace the tension between memoryand freedom, knowing that, through thisunderstanding, I can transcend what isfixed and arrive at something constantlyevolving.Together, my academic training, mycultural identity, and the emotionalinsights from Rodrigo’s mentorship haveshaped the direction of my artisticresearch. My work now exists at theintersection of memory, space, andidentity — an exploration of how I holdonto the past, how it shapes me, andhow it is always in conversation with mypresent selves. I aim to create art thatinvites viewers to do more than justobserve; I want them to feel something,
scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special Editionto reflect on what they remember, and tosee how those memories resonate andtransform in the space between us.The body of work that we have selected forthis special edition of LandEscape hasimmediately captured our attention for theway it challenges conventional approachesto painting in a deeply meaningful way. Weappreciate how you use the act of creationas a kind of lived meditation, turning eachcanvas into a mirror of your personaltransformation. Could you walk us throughyour creative process in more detail?Additionally, what drew you to the use ofFumage, and how does it serve your largerthemes of release and renewal?Antonio Muñiz: My studio practice is not justa method — it’s a living ritual. Each paintingbecomes an invitation to transform, to letgo, and to listen more deeply. I like to saythat I work in a multidimensional way, whereeach piece is a journey — an adventure thatmoves fluidly through past, present, andfuture. In every work, I release old versionsof myself, shedding what no longer servesme and stepping into a process of continualbecoming. The canvas is not simply a surface— it’s a space of liberation. Transformationdoesn’t just feel possible there; it feelsinevitable. Expansion, evolution, andrenewal are not just hoped for — theyhappen.I grew up in a very controlled environment,and when I physically left it, I came tounderstand that the transformation I wasseeking had to begin within. That realizationshaped everything. Change became my
Antonio Muñiz scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLandGray Matters-BUR20Fumage, Acrylic and Pencil on paper22\" x 30\"2020
scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special EditionMatter of The Hearts, Fumage and Oil on Corrugated Plastic, 24x36, 2022
muse — the core energy behind mywork. It’s why I begin each paintingdifferently: sometimes with charcoal,other times with smoke, or even with anexplosion of paint. The unpredictability isessential. This act of automatism at thebeginning of each piece is how I releasethe residue of the past — emotions,images, patterns — and open space fornew energy to move through me. It’s aritual of letting go and welcoming in.I’m deeply connected to the technique offumage, which I use intuitivelythroughout my process. Working withsmoke feels like collaborating withsomething ancient and ephemeral —something that moves beyond myconscious control. The smoke helps merelease what I’ve outgrown, clearingspace for the unknown to enter. It’s aritual of surrender, a way of steppingaside so the work can reveal itself. Thetraces left behind act like portals —delicate imprints that hold glimpses ofwhat’s coming into form. Fire, in thiscontext, becomes a powerful ally: acatalyst that burns through old identities,making way for renewal.The smoke weaves timelines together,binding the past, present, and future intoa single composition — almost likestitching memory into matter. It holdsthe piece together while also keeping italive, open, and in motion.As I create, every movement carriesintention — each gesture, each mark, ischarged with meaning and energy. I seeAntonio Muñiz scapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand
the entire process as sacred, and it’simportant for me to honor the fulljourney of a painting — from the firstintuitive stroke to the final moment ofstillness. When something shifts withinthe composition — when a form moves,disappears, or transforms — I let thosetraces remain. The brushstrokes,splatters, and lines are not mistakes tobe hidden, but living evidence of thework’s evolution. They become maps,memories, and scars — visible proof ofchange unfolding. For me, the processitself holds as much weight as thescapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWLand Special EditionEnigmatic Outburst, Fumage, Enamel and Oil on Canvas, 29x67.5, 2018 Sold LA
finished piece. The journey — with all itsbeauty, uncertainty, and messiness — isthe heart of the work.Music and movement are essential partsof my practice. I dance, I sing, and I letrhythm move through me as I paint. It’snot performative; it’s instinctual. Theenergy has to move. Yoga, meditation,and breathwork keep me grounded inmy body, allowing me to channel thatenergy onto the canvas with clarity andpresence. The body, for me, is the mosthonest tool I have — it never lies. I trustscapeCONTEMPORARY ART REVIEWAntonio Muñiz Land