iñaki bonillas
1981, Mexico City
Despite all appearances, Iñaki Bonillas is not a photographer. Rather, his work investigates the materiality and semiotic depth of said medium in a somewhat topographic manner: starting, and never ending, in a periphery that stands ambiguously as both the material margins of photography as well as its self-reflective dimension—that is, its apparent core. As he exerts infinite variations on generic aspects, alternately related to structure and meaning (primary colors; family photographs; erasures; captioning; fiction; archival habits; etc.), Bonillas delivers a paradox with each of his works where background becomes foreground, face pigment, anecdote main theme, stain signature, and vice-versa.
Unlike many contemporary artists of recent generations, Bonillas started his career before, and instead of, undertaking an official fine arts education. Widely and internationally exhibited before he reached age 20, his work started off with highly analytical studies of ordinary photographic procedures such as printing (in his foundational piece, Trabajos fotográficos, 1998) or pressing the shutter (Diez cámaras documentadas acústicamente, from the same year). Trained in the subtleties of image processing while he worked as an assistant in a photographer’s studio, Bonillas saw his literalistic impulse transformed by the inheritance, in 2000, of his grandfather’s photo archive; a corpus he referred to thereupon as the “J. R. Plaza Archive”. Composed of nearly three thousand pictures grouped in thirty albums, along with eight hundred slides, two volumes of an encyclopedia on film, and a folder of composite documents, the J. R. Plaza Archive became the matrix of more than twenty works produced between the years 2003 and 2016. Although this collection is not the sole source, or territory, of Bonillas’s production from this period, it has allowed the artist to map out a constellation of problems and themes in which the cultural history of photography, as well as its structural behaviors, clearly emerge. Thus, the question of “secondariness” (that is, why certain objects or aspects of an image are subordinate to others) is explored in works such as J. R. Plaza: Reversos (2005), Ciudad y paisaje (2005), Tineidae (2010), Las ideas del espejo (2009-2014), or A Storm of Secondary Things (2012). Other pieces interrogate the frail architectonic of personal identity (the image as “countermemory”) as it is constituted through the archive (Una tarjeta para J.R. Plaza, 2007; A sombra e o brilho, 2007; Fisiología del matrimonio, 2007-2012, Endless Mirror, 2023). Others, still, scrutinize the editing idiosyncrasies of the archive’s original constitutor (Martín-Lunas, 2004-2012; Fotografías delineadas, 2006). The artist’s taste for cataloguing and indexing appears in the first and last of these works (Pequeña historia de la fotografía, 2003; Todas las verticales, 2004; Words and Photos, 2014). But the interest in alienating the medium’s most generic features didn’t only bring Bonillas to embrace his own family archive as one of generic familiarities waiting to be alienated. In recent series, such as The Encyclopedia of the Dead (2012) or The Idea of North (2014), the artist builds intricate paths of literary and artistic reference where one image leads to another and then to many. A fragment of an image constitutes an index, and a minor, accidental gesture signifies a milestone in the history of another art—perhaps literature or music or architecture—at the heart of the photographic material.
Iñaki Bonillas lives and works in Mexico City.
Manuel Cirauqui © Oxford University Press
trabajos fotográficos, 1998/2008
set of 4 albums with manual color photographic prints on resin paper; wood table
table: 29.5 x 68.8 x 39.3 in, album: 14.1 x 14.1 x 2.5 in.
pequeña historia de la fotografía ii, 2003
630 slides, 30 light boxes
11 x 33.5 x 4.7 in. each box
pequeña historia de la fotografía ii, 2003
630 slides, 30 light boxes
11 x 33.5 x 4.7 in. each
filatelia, 2011
20 digital prints on photographic paper; wooden shelves
1 x 9.4 x 3.7 in. each
filatelia, 2011
20 digital prints on photographic paper; wooden shelves
1 x 9.4 x 3.7 in. each
crucigrama # 15, 2015
silver gelatin print on fiber base paper; c-print on resin coated paper
15.4 x 14.2 in.
crucigrama # 7, 2015
silver gelatin print on fiber base paper; c-print on resin coated paper
15.4 x 14.2 in.
the encyclopedia of the dead: darwin, 2012
set of 71 laminated ink-jet prints mounted on wood
5.9 x 5.9 x .8 in. each
the encyclopedia of the dead: darwin, 2012
set of 71 laminated ink-jet prints mounted on wood
5.9 x 5.9 x .8 in. each
a storm of secondary things # 5, 2012
photogravure on hahnemühle paper
11 x 8.7 in.
storm of secondary things # 11, 2012
photogravure on hahnemühle paper
13.8 x 11.8 in.
(détail): blue, 2013
digital prints, book pages, wooden shelf
59 x 222.8 in.
(détail): red, 2013
digital prints, book pages, wooden shelf
59 x 131.1 in.
transparencias, 2014
set of 6 double-sided silk-screen prints on tissue paper
21.7 x 15 in. each
el cid, 2012
set of 10 oil paintings on maple wood, 1 hand-painted text on wall, 15 framed ink-jet prints
67 x 67 x 1.2 in.
the duel, 2011
9 ink-jet prints on baryta paper
17 x 31.5 in. each
george w. rollins, 2015
hand-colored silver gelatin photographs on fiber base paper; risograph prints with a silk-screen coat on paper
64.2 x 56.3 in.
george w. rollins, 2015
hand-colored silver gelatin photographs on fiber base paper; risograph prints with a silk-screen coat on paper
64.2 x 56.3 in.
a sombra e o brilho, 2007
set of 74 typewritten texts on paper; set of 24 kodalith images in light boxes
7.7 x 5.1 inches each paper; 12 x 16.5 x 1.2 in. each box
a sombra e o brilho, 2007
set of 74 typewritten texts on paper; set of 24 kodalith images in light boxes
7.7 x 5.1 in. each paper; 12 x 16.5 x 1.2 in. each box
long day’s journey into night, 2013
set of 12 ink-jet prints on cotton paper
79 x 173 in.
días de campo, 2011
set of 40 ink-jet prints on cotton paper
14.6 x 13.8 in. each
días de campo, 2011
set of 40 ink-jet prints on cotton paper
14.6 x 13.8 in. each
tineidae # 1, 2010
gelatin silver print on fiber base paper
10.4 x 8.5 in.
tineidae # 18, 2010
silver gelatin print on fiber base paper
11.7 x 11.5 in.
the rain came last, 2013
silver gelatin print on fiber base paper
20 x 24 in.
the rain came last, 2013
silver gelatin print on fiber base paper
24 x 20 in.
las ideas del espejo: visiones de tánger, 2014
ink-jet print on cotton paper
23.6 x 15.5 in.
las ideas del espejo # 4, 2014
set of 2 silver gelatin prints on rc paper
30 x 37.8 in. each
escritura nocturna # 8, 2016
photogravure print on cotton paper
22.8 x 16.7 in.
escritura nocturna # 13, 2016
photogravure print on cotton paper
16.7 x 22.8 in.
figuras del pensar: el libro vacío, 2013
Set of 19 ink-jet prints on cotton paper
8.3 x 5.1 in. each
figuras del pensar: el libro vacío, 2013
Set of 19 ink-jet prints on cotton paper
8.3 x 5.1 in. each
the encyclopedia of the dead: blas cubas library, 2012
mdf cabinet, reading lamp, 41 leather-bound books, 17 silk-screen printed postcards, 1 sound piece
84.6 x 47.2 x 47.2 in.
the encyclopedia of the dead: blas cubas library, 2012
mdf cabinet, reading lamp, 41 leather-bound books, 17 silk-screen printed postcards, 1 sound piece
84.6 x 47.2 x 47.2 in.
la idea del norte: fuga, 2014
set of 2 digital prints on cotton paper
68.9 x 94.1 in.
la idea del norte: fuga, 2014
set of 2 digital prints on cotton paper
68.9 x 94.1 in
collages: gedrim-steichen, 2011
ink-jet print on cotton paper
32 x 27.7 in.
collages: baudelaire-talbot, 2011
ink-jet print on cotton paper
27.2 x 37.8 in.
la vuelta al origen # 3, 2010
photographic plate in wooden light box; digital printing on cotton paper in wooden box
13.5 x 11.6 x 5.1 in. each box
la vuelta al origen # 9, 2010
screen with video without sound in wooden box; 35mm film in wooden light box
10.8 x 13.5 x 5.1 in. and 14.1x 15.9 x 5.1 in. each box respectively
secretos: huellas 1, 2016
set of 10 ink-jet prints on cotton paper
26 x 34.2 in. each
secretos: huellas 1, 2016
set of 10 ink-jet prints on cotton paper
26 x 34.2 in. each
secretos: linterna mágica, 2016
set of 20 ink-jet prints on cotton paper
11 x 16.5 in. each
secretos: linterna mágica, 2016
set of 20 ink-jet prints on cotton paper
11 x 16.5 in. each
secretos: inversiones, 2016
set of 3 ink-jet prints on cotton paper
23.6 x 15.7 in. each
secretos: jardín 1, 2016
set of 4 ink-jet prints on cotton paper
11.8 x 17.7 in. each
secretos: jardín 1, 2016
set of 4 ink-jet prints on cotton paper
11.8 x 17.7 in. each
like sparrows around a pool of water, 2016
20 ultraviolet prints on extra clear glass
17.72 x 17.72 in.each, 74.8 x 111.81 x 58.27 in. installed
like sparrows around a pool of water, 2016
20 ultraviolet prints on extra clear glass
17.72 x 17.72 in. each, 74.8 x 111.81 x 58.27 in. installed
detail
Selected solo exhibitions by the artist are: Iñaki Bonillas: Interiors, kurimanzutto, Mexico City (2024); The Projectionist, Galerie Nordenhake, Stockholm, Sweden (2022); Covers from the J.R. Plaza Archive, as part of Siembra, kurimanzutto, Mexico City (2021); Diario de Sucesos poco notables (Journal of (Un) remarkable events), ProjecteSD, Barcelona (2020); Jazz Covers from the J.R. Plaza Archive, Galerie Nordenhake, Mexico City (2020); Marginalia, kurimanzutto, New York (2019); ya no, todavía no (No Longer, Not Yet), kurimanzutto, Mexico City (2018); El triunfo de la vida solitaria (The triumph of solitary life), ProjecteSD, Barcelona (2017); Escritura nocturna (Nocturnal Writing), BORCH Gallery, Berlin (2017); La larga exposición, Biquini Wax, Mexico City (2017); The Infinite Relation in Difference, DUM Project Space, Ljubliana, Slovenia (2016); Secretos, Casa Luis Barragán, Mexico City (2016); Photogravures, BORCHs Butik, Copenhague (2015); Écrit sur du vent, with Bertrand Lamarche, La Compagnie, Marseille, France (two person exhibit) (2015); Arxiu J. R. Plaza, La Virreina Centre de la Imatge, Barcelona (2012); among others.
Bonillas has participated in group exhibitions such as: TODOS JUNTOS (All Together), kurimanzutto, New York (2022); Excepciones Normales, Museo Jumex, Mexico City (2021); Around the Day in Eighty Worlds, musée d’art contemporain de Bordeaux (CAPC), France (2020); Companion Pieces: New Photography 2020, The Museum of Modern Art, New York (2020); The Matter of Photography in the Americas, Cantor Arts Center, Stanford University, CA (2018); La Ciudad de México en el Arte. Travesía de ocho siglos, Museo de la Ciudad de México, Mexico City (2017); Point/Counterpoint: Contemporary Mexican Photography, Museum of Photographic Arts (MOPA), San Diego, CA (2017); Hacer amar plantar árboles, Colección Valzuela, Centro de Arte de Alcobendas, Madrid (2017); Vacío perfecto, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Castilla y León (MUSAC), León, Spain (2017); Crisis of Presence, Pori Art Museum, Finland (2016); Pierre Menard: About Rewriting, Maison de l’Amérique Latine, Paris (2016); Variaciones sobre tema mexicano, Torre Iberdrola, Bilbao, Spain (2016); How to Do Art with Words, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Castilla y León (MUSAC), Spain (2015); Strange Currencies: Art & Action in Mexico City, 1990–2000, The Galleries at Moore, Moore College of Art & Design, Philadelphia, PA (2015); (Ready) Media, LABoral Centro de Arte y Creación Industrial, Gijón, Spain (2015); General Indisposition. An Essay About Fatigue, Fabra i Coats, Centre d’Art Contemporani, Barcelona (2015); Another Part of the New World, Moscow Museum of Modern Art, Russia (2015); This-Hasn’t-Happened, Centro de Arte 2 de Mayo (CA2M), Madrid (2015); Desires and Necessities, Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona (MACBA) (2015); Punctum, Salzburger Kunstverein (2014); Beyond, KUMU, Tallinn, Estonia (2011); Poule!, Colección Jumex, Mexico City (2012); Resisting the Present, Museo Amparo, Puebla (2011), and Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris (2012); Little Theater of Gestures, Kunstmuseum Basel, Switzerland (2009) and Malmö Konsthall, Switzerland (2009); Intervención al pabellón, Pabellón Mies van der Rohe, Barcelona (2005); Pequeña historia de la fotografía, MUHKA, Antwerp, Belguim (2003); Locus Focus, Sonsbeek 9, Arnhem, The Netherlands (2001).
Bonillas has participated in Bienal FEMSA, Museo de Arte e Historia de Guanajuato, León, Guanajuato, Mexico (2024); 30 São Paulo Biennial (2012); and 50 Venice Biennale (2003).
kurimanzutto is proud to announce the group exhibition: Normal Exceptions: Contemporary Art in Mexico in Museo Jumex in which Abraham Cruzvillegas, Daniel Guzmán, Damián Ortega, Eduardo Abaroa, Gabriel Kuri, Gabriel Orozco, Iñaki Bonillas, and Miguel Calderón participate.
Companion Pieces: New Photography 2020 traces correspondence between images — from pendant pictures that together convey a shared message; to visual echoes reverberating through montage; to photographic series that, woven together, deliver more complex accounts of the world.
Watch the conversation presented by America's Society where Iñaki Bonillas talks from his house about his work and his latest exhibition at Nordenhake Gallery in Berlin during the Covid-19 quarantine.
