A Mexican painter introduced to the Mérida art community by Adele Aguirre at SoHo Galleries has found a new direction.
Earlier this year, the artist Jorge Alberto Aguilar Rojas — better known by his initials JAAR — attended the Annecy Animation Film Festival in Paris. He came home deeply influenced by what he saw.
“This trip was of the utmost importance for my artistic training,” JAAR says. At 36, he’s entering a new phase of his career.
He is studying animation at Mexico City’s SAE Institute, where his artist parents, Argelia Rojas and Juan Carlos Breceda, are alumni. In 2024, JAAR will move to London to finish his degree and then return to France for a master’s degree in animation at Gobelins in Paris.
“During my stay in France, I met with great Mexican and international artists in the field of animation,” JAAR recalls. Mexico was the Festival’s “guest country.”
The festival was a whirlwind of top talent. It put him in direct contact with Mexican-born animator Jorge Gutierrez; film director Guillermo del Toro, who has also turned to animation; twin character designers Sebastián and Diego Ramírez; and ND Stevenson, the creator of Nimona, a new Netflix movie.
“This encounter with all these personalities from the animation world made my perspective of art drastically change 180 degrees,” JAAR adds, projecting that his paintings — which are typically colorful, somewhat abstract posed portraits of fanciful figures — will incorporate more movement.
“Adele and Kena from Soho Galleries have put all their trust in me to be able to continue my studies in animation, knowing that the next time fate brings us together will be with animated JAAR art, which can make present and future collectors find a more friendly way to access the JAAR world, the happiness that Soho and Adele have brought to my work has been quite a lot since the last 13 years since we had the opportunity to meet in the city from Mexico on one of his trips in search of Mexican talent for Soho,” he says.
JAAR characterizes his art as Neo-baroque Hyper Surrealism, full of fury, joy and magic. In his next phase, JAAR welcomes the integration of digital media, “preparing me for the creation of a future where technology is a key part of that future to come.”
JAAR’s work can be viewed at SoHo Galleries, Calle 60, 400A between 43 and 41, or at sohogalleriesmx.com. Instagram: @artjaar
