From the heart of southeastern México, Javier Barrera Perera has carved a steady and poetic path in contemporary art. Born in Mérida, Yucatán, this visual artist, who also teaches at the School of Architecture, Habitat, Art and Design at the Autonomous University of Yucatán, has made photography and painting his primary modes of expression, developing a body of work that engages with the symbolic, the sensory, and the conceptual.
A graduate of the Mérida School of Fine Arts with a specialty in Visual Arts, Barrera has expanded his training with studies in photography and the semiotics of imagery, enriching his work with a critical and deeply personal aesthetic perspective.
His artistic career has transcended borders. He has participated in numerous group and solo exhibitions in México and countries such as the United States, Spain, Italy, Cuba, and Belize. Among his most notable solo shows are “Grao” (Lux Perpetua Art Centre, 2017), a profound visual exploration born of a year and a half traveling the Yucatecan coastlines, where the landscape–devoid of human presence–becomes the central figure; “Morfalia” (Centro Cultural Mérida Olimpo, 2019), and more recently “Crónicas Nefelibatas” (2023–2024), an itinerant series exhibited in venues like Mérida’s City Museum, Plaza Península Hartii, and the Edgar Herrera Gallery in Cancún.
In “Crónicas Nefelibatas”, Barrera constructs a unique symbolic universe where human figures, animals, seascapes, and an Oriental-inspired atmosphere converge. Using his own technique of oil and wax on canvas, he builds compositions that invite deep, almost meditative contemplation of the relationship between humans, their surroundings, and the subconscious.
His work has been recognized with several awards and grants, including an artist residency at the Centro Culturale Cavallerizza in Torino, Italy (2017), a grant from México’s National Fund for Culture and the Arts (2013) for the project Hechizos de agua y sal, and honorary mentions such as the one received at the Joaquín Clausell Painting Biennial (2009). Today, Javier Barrera Perera is not only a key figure in southeastern México’s contemporary visual art scene but also a creator whose work is part of private collections both locally and internationally. His ever-evolving artistic approach reflects a persistent desire to explore new ways of seeing and feeling the world.
Currently, the artist is showcasing his extraordinary pieces at the Hartii Cultural Center, located in Mérida’s Colonia Campestre. This exhibition, titled “Utópica: Más Allá Del Caos (Beyond the Chaos)” will be on display through mid-August of this year. Admission is completely free, but we recommend making an appointment via WhatsApp at 999 250 0569 for the best experience.
Centro Cultural Hartii
Av. del Rogers Hall #135 x 36 y 38, Campestre
WA: 999 250 0569
IG: hartii.art
First published in Yucatán Today print and digital magazine no. 450, in June 2025.
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