So many of the magic that exists in the work of every artist is that they have captured so much of themselves in each piece; experiences, emotions, desires or simply answers to their own questions that arise through lines, colors and even textures, which also manage to captivate and move other people. Juan Latapi is a young, very talented and professional artist who has fascinated us with the uniqueness of his style.
Who is Juan Latapi and how did you get to this precise moment where Art is such a part of your life?
Juan Latapi is a Mexican contemporary abstract artist seeking in art expression, an identity code that interacts and connects between the sentimental and the provocative. Those feelings and emotions that all human beings have had and that sometimes we do not know how to express. For a long time, I have had a deep interest in expressing myself, but I could not find the right way to do it, until an emotional crisis came into my life and allowed me to re-evaluate my identity, a natural process of change and an encounter with myself. All these elements helped me rethink and reinterpret my role as an individual in this world through art and thus identify myself as the artist that I am. I think art is definitely a great catalyst of emotions, it’s where I best identify myself, and this is the most honest thing I’ve done in my life.
How was the process where you discovered your own style, techniques and finally made unique creations?
Since I was very young, I had the desire to draw and create, in fact in all my notebooks there were always doodles, but I had never paid attention and structure to them into something more aesthetic until one day: After a crisis and several therapy sessions, my therapist recommended me to turn to see those doodles and go much deeper in that activity. My professional training never involved visual art as a subject of study. I consider myself to be self-taught but have trained in the hands of plastic arts with classes, which allows me to explore various techniques so that I can use them in my style of expression. It was at that moment when I discovered that those drawings were the most genuine part of me, it was where I felt most comfortable and where I really gave identity to my existence.
Then, the process of discovering my style came, and let’s say that it has been something very wild, I write it like that because from my experience It has been a very personal and intimate discovery, I feel that I have found my style by getting rid of the fear of perfection, letting it flow and taking risks, there are no good or bad, it is just what it is. I believe that when you know that not everything is perfect you have a window of opportunity to create and above all to structure your own style and feel comfortable with that. One of the big premises I have is: Always go back to what excites you and create your own world.
Has Mexico inspired you in any way?
Mexico has inspired me a lot, it is an important part of my essence, and I am proud to be Mexican. Part of my work reflects a cultural identity that characterizes us as Mexicans, vibrant colors that show the energy, warmth, cultural diversity, gastronomic and diverse traditions that only in Mexico you can find. And with my art I try to generate this new code of “Mexicanity”, mixing traditional elements with modern ones. Mexico is the best country in the world.
Can you tell us more about your latest expo in Mexico City?
¨Trayectos Infinitos¨ is an exhibition that shows part of my work as an artist, since I started to the most recent, where you can see my evolution; in fact, there are some of the most iconic works that have marked my stages. ¨Trayectos Infinitos¨ has the objective of showing the viewers the versatility of my art, which can be as deep or as simple as you want to see it. I want my work to provoke every human being who sees it, to feel what I felt at that moment when each one of those pieces were created. Infinite worlds, monsters, dreamlike beings, spaces, settings, characters, phrases, abstract figures, etc., which result in a universe of creation that conjugates in the same place, in time and space, and that together conforms the personality and style of my work and my speech.
Do you have any specific goals or even dreams involving Art?
I would like to inspire more people to do what they have always wanted to create, that dreams can be possible with discipline and without fears. That they have the chance to become what they truly want and if they create it from their heart and passion, success will arrive. One of my main goals as an artist is to transcend, to demonstrate with my art that human mind is a huge world of emotions, feelings, characters, stories and experiences; my art is my story and from that point I build my message. Of course that I would like to travel through the whole world with my art and to be exposed in galleries and museums. Why not?
Anything else you would like to share with us?
Today our world needs any honest form of expression, we live in a stage where art becomes a refuge and catharsis of everything that surrounds us. It is in art where we have the creative freedom to question ourselves, free ourselves and feel the transcendence of our existence. Let’s not neglect artistic expressions and support the talent of all creators.
Instagram: @juan_m_latapi
jmlatapi.art
¨Trayectos Infinitos¨ EXPO 
¨Trayectos Infinitos¨ EXPO
Photos courtesy of Juan Latapi.