Diana Calvillo de Chapa

Diana Calvillo de Chapas´ work is influenced by the Mexican architecture of the 1920s and the constructional aspect of architecture plays an important role in the development of her art. The interdisciplinary relationship between architecture and painting has been a tradition in Mexico since the beginning of the 20th century. The symbiosis of architecture and the fine arts had already been expressed by Luis Barragan (1902 – 1988), the father of modern architecture in Mexico, with the following words: "Architecture is not only spatial but also musical. This music is played by water." Other Mexican artists such as Diego Rivera (1886 – 1957) have also taken a keen interest in architecture. In Diana Calvillo de Chapas' work, whether sculpture or painting, the architectural monument as an object created by the human being as his protective shell, is referred to again and again.
Architecture and the human being stand in close relationship with each other. This knowledge refers to the tradition of her homeland Mexico. She frequently combines painting and sculpture in aesthetically fascinating collages consisting of metal, paint or glass and other materials – materials that had in the past and still have important industrial significance for Mexico, and especially for Monterrey. In her latest projects she addresses ecological questions, making noticeably more use of natural materials than heretofore. She takes a stand on this problem and places such disagreeable topics as separation and death, which are inevitably connected with migration, in the foreground. For Diana Calvillo this problem goes hand in hand with a general problem of humanity. She herself states that art is "una refleción política, antropológica, social y todo lo relacionado con esa problemática humana". For her, the future as well as genuine freedom lie in the common growth of nations.