Maximino Javier - prints and biography

Biography

Maximino Javier (b. 1948, Oaxaca, Mexico) is an artist celebrated for his imaginative blend of fantasy, folk tradition, and contemporary form. Largely self-taught in his youth, he later pursued formal studies at the Oaxaca School of Fine Arts and became a founding member of the Rufino Tamayo Workshop, a cornerstone of Oaxacan artistic development.

Javier works across multiple media, including engraving, painting, ceramics, and sculpture. His imagery often draws on rural life, music, and folklore, weaving animals, landscapes, and mythic figures into vibrant compositions. The influence of Oaxacan culture is ever-present—its saturated colors, rhythmic forms, and layered symbolism providing the foundation for much of his work.

In his engravings and paintings, Javier combines a playful sense of imagination with subtle social reflection. His characters may emerge from local legends, or from his own invented stories, balancing whimsy with allegorical depth. Whether portraying rustic musicians, hybrid creatures, or dreamlike scenes, his art captures both the everyday and the extraordinary.

Over the course of his career, Javier has exhibited widely in Mexico and abroad. His works are included in significant collections and continue to resonate with audiences for their warmth, originality, and poetic spirit. As part of the generation that helped expand the profile of Oaxacan art internationally, Javier remains an influential figure, recognized for his ability to translate the soul of his region into universal visual language.