Ariosto Rivera is a contemporary Mexican artist celebrated for his dynamic, emotionally charged works that explore cultural identity, mythology, and the human condition. Born in Mexico City, Rivera studied Fine Arts at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), where he built a strong foundation in both classical techniques and experimental media. His multidisciplinary practice blends painting, mixed media, and installation, drawing deeply from Mexican folklore, personal memory, and modern urban life. Rivera is reclaiming tradition through contemporary expression.

A hallmark of Rivera’s artistic approach is his innovative use of popotillo, an ancestral Mexican technique rarely seen in contemporary art. Traditionally crafted from the dried stem of a wild plant (Sporobolus), commonly known as popotillo or zacatón, this fiber is harvested during the dry season, cleaned, dyed with natural or synthetic pigments, and sun-dried. Artists then place the fine strands one by one onto a beeswax-coated surface with meticulous precision, cutting them to size using tools as simple as a needle or even a fingernail. The result is a vibrant, light-reflective surface rich in texture and cultural symbolism.

Historically rooted in pre-Columbian Mexico, popotillo art was used to decorate temples and ritual objects, often alongside featherwork. It persisted through the colonial period and into the 19th century as a folk tradition. Though it experienced a resurgence in the 20th century, it has remained largely underdocumented and marginalized in academic discourse.

Rivera revitalizes and redefines this ancestral technique, incorporating popotillo into contemporary, often three-dimensional works. By doing so, he bridges the ancient with the modern, evoking both fragility and strength while pushing the boundaries of material-based art. His work elevates popotillo from traditional craft to a powerful medium of contemporary expression, bringing it from rural workshops and artisan fairs into galleries and museums. Communities such as Zinacantepec, Ocoyoacac, and Epazoyucan continue to keep this tradition alive, often through family-based or self-taught methods. Rivera builds on this living heritage, using the technique not just as a medium, but as a message that honors the land, memory, and indigenous knowledge systems while speaking to the global present.

Rivera’s work has been exhibited in prominent galleries and institutions across Mexico, the United States, and Europe. He has been invited to several international art fairs, and his pieces are held in numerous private and public collections worldwide. Known for his vivid color palette and symbolic imagery, he creates artworks that resonate across cultures while maintaining a uniquely Mexican perspective.

Artbay Gallery is proud to serve as Ariosto Rivera’s sole representative in Australasia.