Miguel Ángel Rojas. The night

From 11 November to 15 March 2027, in the Sabatini Building (Ground Floor) of the Reina Sofía Museum, you can see an exhibition of key works from the career of Miguel Ángel Rojas (Bogotá, 1946), recognised as one of the most important artists on the Latin American art scene. 

With a career spanning more than fifty years, Miguel Ángel Rojas has addressed Colombia’s key social and political issues in his works: from drug trafficking and violence – which are often linked – to education, migration, decolonisation and the exploitation of natural resources.

The artist’s recognition is also tied to the liberating way in which he has tackled homosexuality (through his imagery), in his visits to cinemas where sexual encounters between strangers were encouraged. And his experimental photographic work in the darkroom led him to create pioneering works.

In La noche, darkness moves from the dim light of the screening rooms to the pitch black of the charcoal with which Miguel Ángel Rojas creates maps of eroded territories, in which he denounces the ruin of the Amazonian landscape, devastated by capitalist exploitation.

The artist’s work has always operated on the fringes of the underworld, verging on tragedy, whilst at the same time allowing for deeper interpretations that convey messages of profound political and ethical commitment. Curated by María Wills Londoño, the exhibition traces a path that begins with the ramifications of his most recent works and leads back to the artist’s very roots.

Image credits:

• Close-up. Miguel Ángel Rojas, DAMA CHIBCHA, 1986, partially developed silver gelatine print, metal sheets and stitching, 35 x 38 cm. Courtesy of Galería La Cometa