Maria Kalach Mexico, b. 1991

María Kalach (b. 1991, Mexico City) sketches and paints portraits - intimate self-portraits, others in life drawing sessions, her home, architecture, interiors, carefully observed plants and most recently a number of portraits of a building in Colonia Juarez. While a "portrait" traditionally refers to a depiction of a person, the term can also be used more broadly to describe a visual representation of any subject, including plants, including buildings. Rooted in close observation, Kalach’s work reflects a profound ability to capture the figure from real life, while her experience as a gardener and landscape designer enriches her detailed and sensitive studies of plants. Her spatial awareness shines through in her compelling depictions of interiors, where volume and atmosphere come alive.

 

Kalach's draftsmanship combines a natural precision with a wild, energetic line and swift movement, revealing her as a talented draughts-woman whose lines are both expressive yet controlled. Yet there is an ever-present sense of wanting to talk and express what she sees - “I paint because sometimes I overflow with feelings, images and desires.” Her work becomes a place to transfer energy and emotion to the paper. Whether capturing the quiet movement of a garden, the tilt of a neck, or the architecture of a room, Kalach paints not just to record what she sees, but to release what overflows —an internal world of sensation, vision and feeling made visible.

 

Kalach studied drawing at the École des Beaux-Arts in Lyon, France, and at the Universidad del Claustro de Sor Juana in Mexico City. She has a diploma in Landscape Architecture from the Instituto Superior de Arte y Diseño (ISAD), where she was mentored by Taller de Paisaje Entorno. Alongside her painting practice, Kalach works as a gardener and landscape designer at Taller de Arquitectura X (TAX) and is the founder of Philodendro, a nursery and landscaping studio based in Mexico City.