Flor Garduño

Early Life

Flor Garduño was born in Mexico in 1957. Garduño studied visual art at the Antigua Academia de San Carlos (UNAM), where she was taught by Hungarian photographer, Kati Horna, who would have a lasting influence on her work. Upon graduating, Garduño began working for Manuel Álvarez Bravo, Mexico’s most celebrated photographer of the twentieth century, who taught her many of the formal techniques of the medium.

Photographic Career

In 1981, Garduño worked at the department of Public Education under the supervision of photographer Mariana Yampolsky. During this time she visited Mexico’s countryside to photograph rural communities for primary school textbooks. Deeply touched by the difficulties faced by the indigenous population that she encountered on her travels, Garduño has since sought to reference traditional Mexican life, iconography and folklore in her work. Her work reflects a deep connection with the natural landscape, influenced by her childhood growing up in a rural community. Her photography often includes motifs and heavy symbolism to convey the poetry and expression at the centre of her work.

Awards & Exhibitions

Garduño has published several books, the first of which, Magia del Juego Eterno, was published in 1986. Her work has been exhibited internationally and is included in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art, New York, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the Center for Creative Photography, Tucson, the Museo de Arte Moderno, Mexico City, the Bibliothèque National de France, Paris and the Museum Ludwig, in Cologne. She has also been the recipient of a Kodak award for her book Witnesses of Time.