Hulda Guzman: Miracle Fruits

"Everyday life and the uncanny coalesce in a potent brand of magical surrealism that oscillates between Guzmán's own private cosmos and a universal collective." —ArtforumThis is the first ever volume dedicated to the Dominican painter Hulda Guzmán (born 1984), who is best known for her psychedelic junglescapes populated by figures both real and imaginary. Invoking the exoticizing fantasies of Henri Rousseau and Paul Gauguin, Guzmán's paintings deconstruct imperialist fantasies, proposing an alternative vision of symbiosis—between both nature and its inhabitants and the conscious and unconscious mind. Presenting 84 pieces by the artist—seven of which are new—the volume is organized in sections that explore different facets of her practice, including her relationship to modernist architecture and her creative sublimation of inner demons. Miracle Fruits also features her lesser-known studio scenes and self-portraits, as well as three new essays that probe Guzmán's fusion of art historical references, such as ancient Chinese painting, Japanese Ukiyo-e, Impressionism and Post-impressionism, Surrealism and Magical Realism, Mexican Muralism and ex-voto painting.