Margarita Azurdia

(Guatemala | 1931-1998)

Provocative, multifaceted, and in constant creative metamorphosis, Margarita Azurdia produced an extensive body of work that spanned various disciplines during her lifetime. Inspired by the geometric shapes of indigenous Guatemalan textiles, she created large-scale sculptural paintings. She made an emblematic series of sculptures carved in wood with handcrafted objects, zoomorphic figures, and women dressed in boots, rifles, and tropical fruits that evoked the altars of the highland towns, impregnated with the characteristic cultural and religious syncretism in the history of Guatemala. She explored the body’s movement through ritual and sacred dance and questioned the paradigms among art, spirit, and nature.