dr. lakra
1972, Mexico City
The work of Jerónimo López Ramírez, better known as Dr. Lakra, is characterized by irreverent and provocative images that transgress established norms, leaving the viewer teetering between attraction and repulsion. While he is best known for his drawings and paintings on appropriated posters, erotic magazines and postcards, his practice encompasses mural painting, collage and sculpture. Through these different mediums he explores his interests in anthropology and ethnography, documenting his fascination with taboos, fetishes, myths and rituals of different cultures. An avid collector of diverse objects, Lakra views the search for materials and images as an essential aspect of his practice. His compositions combine historical references and contemporary images, incorporating quotes from popular culture, interwoven with religious and social iconographies. The way he juxtaposes and refashions these various elements reveals a deep understanding of art history, as well as a subversive sense of humor. Dr. Lakra dismantles and subverts dominant ideologies to question what is considered civilized or barbaric, correct or incorrect, “high” or “folk” art.
Dr. Lakra joined Gabriel Orozco’s workshop Taller de los viernes from 1988 to 1991, where he began exploring painting, drawing and collage.
Dr. Lakra lives and works in Oaxaca, Mexico.
untitled (autopsia), 2005
ink on vintage magazine
11.81 x 16.54 in.
untitled (mi raza), 2007
ink on vintage magazine
9.61 x 9.61 in.
la crema de la almendra, 2012
ink and watercolor on vintage advertisement
14.17 x 11.02 in.
untitled (cupido lupita), 2006
tatooed plastic doll
12.6 x 7.48 x 2.95 in.
untitled (las tres gracias), 2006
set of 3, ink on vintage magazine
925 x 6.69 in.
untitled (family matters), 2012
ink on vintage postcard
5.35 x 3.43 in.
untitled (pareja bordando y leyendo), 2006
ink on vintage postcard
3.54 x 5.51 in.
untitled (niña vampiro con sombrero), 2007
ink on vintage magazine
7.68 x 9.65 in.
sin título / untitled (sillón rojo), 2004
ink on vintage magazine
13.19 x 9.84 in.
untitled (elle wood), 2007
ink on vintage magazine
7.01 x 9.84 in.
untitled (mujer con gorila), 2004
ink on vintage magazine
8.35 x 9.25 in.
untitled (mano odio), 2005
ink tattoo on plastic hand
1.89 x 7.28 x 3.43 in.
untitled (todo/nada), 2009
ink on vintage lithography
7.09 x 4.33 in.
untitled, 2008
ink on vintage lithograph
7.09 x 4.33 in.
untitled (tres señores con bigote), 2007
ink on lithograph
13.98 x 8.86 and 13.98 x 8.46 in.
untitled (X8 controla), 2005
ink on paper
11.02 x 9.25 in.
sin título / untitled (el halcón), 2005
ink on poster
21.65 x 15.75 in.
untitled (la familia), 2007
ink on vintage magazine
12.01 x 8.66 in.
untitled (para ti), 2007
ink on vintage magazine
11.61 x 9.06 in.
untitled (zorro), 2010
ink on vintage lithograph
11.89 x 9.02 in.
untitled (el pueblo enardecido), 2011
rabbit glue, vinyl, acrylic and gouache on paper
71.85 x 98.62 in.
untitled (apareció sin vida), 2011
rabbit glue, vinyl, acrylic and gouache on paper
109.06 x 51.18 in.
untitled (mía o de nadie...y que la ahorca), 2011
rabbit glue, vinyl, acrylic and gouache on paper
52.95 x 76.57 in.
untitled (el pueblo enardecido), 2011
rabbit glue, vinyl, acrylic and gouache on paper
71.85 x 98.62 in.
untitled (pescando), 2005
ink on vintage magazine
4.25 x 5.39 in.
untitled (pajaros), 2005
ink on vintage magazine
5.51 x 5.51 in.
untitled (quiet retreat), 2008
ink on vintage magazine
5.43 x 5.12 in.
untitled (senador eugenio prado), 2006
water color, acrylic and pencil on vintage magazine
15.16 x 11.22 in.
untitled (fondo flores plateadas), 2007
dried insects on photo-relief portrait on wood
10.63 x 8.27 x 1.77 in.
untitled (corbata puntos blancos), 2007
dried insect on photo-relief portrait on wood
13.7 x 8.07 x 5.75 in.
untitled (arcimboldo V), 2010
cuttings collaged on vintage book page
12.6 x 9.06 in.
untitled (nalgas), 2003
ink on vintage magazine
9.25 x 12.2 in.
untitled (anciano con cuchillo), 2007
ink on japanese ukiyo-e
13.94 x 9.65 in.
untitled (shunga VIII), 2009
ink and acrylic on japanes ukiyo-e print
14.57 x 9.84 in.
untitled (hiroshima tomonohira take-emon), 2007
pigment on japanese woodblock print (ukiyo-e)
13.83 x 9.21 in.
untitled (shunga IV), 2007
ink and acrylic on japanese ukiyo-e print
9.65 x 6.54 in.
untitled (a rastras), 2007
ink on cotton paper
22.24 x 30.12 in.
untitled (alma), 2007
gouache, acrylic, watercolor on japanese paper
76.38 x 73.82 in.
untitled (mujer con serpientes), 2009
natural black pigment on vintage magazine
11.57 x 9.25 in.
untitled (mujer sin rostro), 2009
natural black pigment on vintage magazine
11.57 x 9.25 in.
untitled (mujer dormida), 2009
ink on paper
12.01 x 9.37 in.
untitled (salomé), 2013-2014
ink on vintage magazine
13.39 x 9.65 in.
untitled (melancolía), 2013-2014
ink on vintage magazine
12.6 x 8.82 in.
untitled (buddha's dreams), 2015
ink and pigments on paper
72.05 x 105.51 in.
Major recent solo exhibitions include: Dr. Lakra, as part of Siembra, kurimanzutto, Mexico City (2021); Carlos Amorales & Dr. Lakra, kurimanzutto out east, New York, NY (2021); Diario de Viaje, Instituto de Artes Gráficas de Oaxaca (IAGO), Mexico (2019); Dr. Lakra - Yurugu, Museo de la Ciudad - Querétaro, Mexico, (2018); Dr. Lakra, MATE- Museo Mario Testino, Lima, Peru (2016); Dr. Lakra, Nordiska Akvarellmuseet, Skärhamn, Sweden (2015); Dr. Lakra and Toño Camuñas, MUPO- Museo de los Pintores Oaxaqueños, Oaxaca, Mexico (2014); Mexican Demons and Dancing Skeletons: Dr. Lakra in dialogue with Posada, Hostelbro Kunstmuseum, Denmark (2012); Dr. Lakra, Museo de la Ciudad de México, Mexico City (2011); Dr. Lakra, MARCO- Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Monterrey, Mexico (2011); Dr. Lakra, Museo Amparo, Puebla, Mexico (2011); Dr. Lakra, The Drawing Center, New York (2011); Los dos amigos, Dr. Lakra & Abraham Cruzvillegas, MACO- Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca, Mexico (2005); Dr. Lakra, Kunsthaus Tacheles, Berlin (1993), among others.
He has participated in numerous group exhibitions, such as: A Story of a Merchant, kurimanzutto, Mexico City (2023); TODOS JUNTOS (All Together), kurimanzutto, New York, NY (2022); Ayuujkjä’ äy ëy Konk. Una fabulación basada en un mito mixe, Casa de Cultura Oaxaqueña, Oaxaca, Mexico (2022); and Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona (MACBA), Spain (2022); El tiempo en las cosas II. Salas de Arte Contemporáneo, Museo Amparo, Puebla, Mexico (2021); L’art du tatouage derrière les barreaux, Musée Du Quai Branly Jacques Chirac, Paris (2018); Tattoos: Ritual. Identity. Obsession, ROM- Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada (2016); Caleidoscopio y Rompecabezas. Latinoamérica en la Colección MUSAC, CAAM Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain (2016); Magnificent Obsessions: The Artist as Collector, Barbican Centre, London (2015); Degrees of Freedom, MAMbo - Museo d’Arte Moderna di Bologna, Italy (2015); Punxdefektuozoz. Work in progress, MWW Muzeum Wspóczesne Wrocaw, Poland (2015); Tattoo – From Maritime Heroes to World Art, Brandts Odense, Denmark (2014); Tatoueurs, tatoués, Musée du quai Branly, Paris (2014); Poetry and Politics, Nordiska Akvarellmuseet, Skärhamn, Sweden (2012); Painting with a Hammer to Nail the Crotch of Civilization: A Group Show of Wall Works and Tattoo Imagery, Manila Contemporary, Makati, Philippines (2010); Size DOES Matter, The FLAG Art Foundation, New York (2010); Desenhos (drawings): a-z, Museu de Lisboa, Portugal (2009); Goth: Reality of The Departed World, Yokohama Museum of Art, Japan (2007); Wunderkammer: A Century of Curiosities, MoMA, New York (2007); Escultura Social: A New Generation of Art from Mexico City, MCA- The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, United States (2007); The Alameda, National Center of Latino Arts and Culture, San Antonio, United States (2008); Mad Love, Arken Museum of Modern Art, Skovvej, Denmark (2007), among others.
We are thrilled to be a part of this new gallery-led initiative - an online community of 50+ galleries dedicated to art from the Global South and its diaspora.
Listen to the playlist Punk: sus rastros en el arte contemporáneo by Daniel Guzmán, Dr. Lakra and Miguel Calderón on Spotify.
In White Columns, Dr. Lakra will present some recent, never before-seen collages.
Many of the works, both contemporary and ritual, contains symbols and concepts that seek to show the invisible. Its strength and visual and aesthetic impact come from this symbolic load, precisely because they convey ideas and concepts that go beyond the everyday and utilitarian.
