Born in the borderland of McCallen, Texas, in 1985, Leslie Martinez lives and works in Dallas. Using materials and colors crafted from often hand-mixed paint, Martinez’s work speaks to abstraction as a process of invention and overcoming limits. For the artist, painting is a way to envision how bodies can exist safely in environments that are hostile, regulated, and binary. Solo exhibitions have been held at MoMA PS1, New York (2023), and Commonwealth and Council, Los Angeles (2023), and Martinez’s work has been featured in group exhibitions at the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York (2024), and Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand (2024), among many others. The artist has participated in residencies at Denniston Hill, Glen Wild, New York; Woodbridge (2023); and the Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, Dallas (2020), and is a recipient of the Latinx Artist Fellowship, Mellon Foundation (2022).

Photo: Courtesy of the artist

Leslie Martinez nació en 1985, en la zona fronteriza de McCallen, Texas. Hoy vive y trabaja en Dallas. Al usar materiales y colores creados a menudo con pintura mezclada a mano, su obra dialoga con la abstracción como proceso de invención y superación de límites. Para Martinez, pintar es una manera de imaginar cómo los cuerpos pueden existir sin peligro en ambientes hostiles, regulados y binarios. Ha tenido muestras individuales en el MoMA PS1, Nueva York (2023), y el Commonwealth and Council, Los Ángeles (2023). Ha participado en exhibiciones colectivas en el Whitney Museum of American Art, Nueva York (2024), y el Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand (2024), entre otros. Martinez ha hecho residencias artísticas en Denniston Hill, Glen Wild, Nueva York; Woodbridge (2023), y en la Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, Dallas (2020). En 2022 recibió el Latinx Artist Fellowship de la Mellon Foundation.