Santiago Reyes Villaveces

Santiago Reyes Villaveces (b. 1986, Bogotá, Colombia) is an artist whose work delves into the examination of historical knowledge systems used to control and colonize nature, tracing their contemporary manifestations. Utilizing various mediums such as drawings, site-specific installations, moving images, and sculptures, he actively engages with the materiality of power structures. His practice draws heavily from Latin American science fiction, which explores both dominant global scientific perspectives and non-hegemonic knowledge systems arising from colonial tensions, addressing themes of politics, technology, ecology, and social justice.Santiago's art is influenced by Latin America's colonial history and its relationship with the contemporary climate crisis. His most recent projects take an interest in today's space exploration, reflecting on the limits of extractivism, colonization and the survival of life forms—both within and beyond our planet. His focus lies in creating artworks that not only raise awareness but also stimulate critical dialogues about the material aspects of shaping power systems. Santiago has presented solo exhibitions worldwide, including, "Graft" at Instituto de Visión Gallery, New York, U.S (2023); "Guaca" at Alessandro Casciaro Gallery, Bolzano, Italy (2023); Acoustic Fossil at Baluarte de Santa Catalina, Cartagena de Indias, Colombia (2022); Ciaula Discovers the Moon at Ncontemporary Gallery, Milan, Italy (2022); Cosmic Simpathy at Galería Casanova, São Paulo, Brazil (2022); "Arabidopsis Thaliana" at the Museum of Modern Art in Bogotá (in collaboration with Ilona Jurkonytė), curated by Eugenio Viola, and "Arp," Matteo Olivero Prize (2019) among his highlighted works. He holds an MA in Sculpture from the Royal College of Art and a BA in Visual Arts and Art History and Theory from Los Andes, Bogotá. Currently, he is a lecturer at the Universidad del Bosque in Bogotá and resides and works in Colombia.