An artist residency in Mexico City

In July 2025, I arrived in Mexico City for a two week art residency. I sure didn’t expect the kind of inspiration I was about to be infused with. Neither did I anticipate a complete transformation in the way I’d approach my work. So much so, that I ended up returning a few months later. More on that later!

Mexico City is a place where colour, history, and daily life blend seamlessly. From the moment I began exploring its streets, I was immersed in a sensory experience unlike anything I had known before. Murals stretch across buildings, markets overflow with vibrant textiles and hand-painted ceramics, and centuries of culture live side by side with contemporary expression. Art isn’t confined to galleries—it is woven into everyday life.

This cultural openness profoundly impacted my creative process. I found myself letting go of rigid planning and embracing spontaneity. Mexico City is a little bit like Toronto, where pockets of neighbourhoods each have their own culture. The residency I stayed at was located in Condesa. A bohemian neighbourhood. Spontaneous, with an electric pulse.  On my daily walks, I would encounter the daily rhythm of street vendors, pedestrians, and crazy traffic. I also observed how artists and craftspeople work intuitively, guided by tradition, emotion, and storytelling rather than strict rules. This approach pushed my own intuition and encouraged me to trust my natural work flow, letting the materials lead the work.

Mexican culture’s deep connection to symbolism and ritual is palpable in every corner. Colours carry meaning. Patterns tell stories. Everyday objects are transformed into vessels of memory and identity. I felt like I began to incorporate richer colour palettes, bolder forms, and layered textures into my art, reflecting the city’s visual language and emotional depth.

Beyond aesthetics, the residency introduced me to a powerful sense of community. I witnessed how art in Mexico City serves as a collective voice—honouring heritage, and celebrating life. This sense of shared cultural expression reminded me that art can be both personal and communal at once.

By the time I completed my residency, I felt my practice had evolved. I returned home with a renewed sense of purpose, a more intuitive creative process, and a deeper appreciation for culture as a living, breathing influence.

I was fortunate to have met individuals working on amazing humanitarian and environmental projects. One such project was called Second Life of Solar. Solar panels have a life expectancy of 30 years. Afterwards, these panels are dumped into a landfill, like regular trash. Second Life of Solar is repurposing these panels though visual art. In an effort to create a circular economy, profits from the work sold are then redistributed to humanitarian projects in rural villages.

I was invited to participate in such a project and without a second though, I returned to Mexico City for another round of creative outpouring. I had one week to create a work of art on a solar panel. The result was amazing. 

Mexico City doesn’t just inspire new work—it reshapes how I create, thinks, and tell stories through my art.

Thanks to Hashtag Gallery, Graeme Luey at Casa Lienzo Residency for this incredible turning point—a reminder that sometimes, stepping into another culture opens the door to discovering your own voice in a new way.