FINDINGS · MEXICO CITY · ENCOUNTERS
The rituals of Pedro Reyes
There are artists who create works. And there are artists who create worlds to inhabit. Pedro Reyes belongs to the latter.
Sculpture, community, and humor as a tool
Born in Mexico City in 1972, Pedro Reyes creates work that involves the public as an active part of the piece — whether transforming weapons into shovels and musical instruments (Palas por Pistolas, Disarm), or turning the therapeutic act into social sculpture (Sanatorium). His work explores the invisible geometry of our personal and collective relationships.
We went to talk to him about something more intimate than his work: his daily rituals. What he does, almost without thinking, to be present again.
«Much of one's quality of life should be measured by how much you can distance yourself from screens and do things with your hands.»
Ordering as a way of thinking
Every day, Pedro takes out the books he needs. Every night, he puts them back. It's a small, almost invisible gesture, but for him, it's a moment of real calm: deciding where each book goes within a library he has built over a lifetime and career.
It's never quite finished. There are always boxes of books awaiting their place. And there it is, the true ritual: not in the tidy library, but in the constant act of tidying it.
When flipping through the books to figure out where to place them, something happens without him seeking it out; ideas appear. Fragments of something read years ago intersect with what he is working on today. The library is not just a place where he stores knowledge: it's where he rediscovers it.
Hands, instead of scrolling
In a world accustomed to doomscrolling, Pedro chooses something else: physical objects, concrete gestures, time with his hands. It's not nostalgia; it's a daily decision.
Spaces already have their own aroma
We also talked about aromas; for Pedro, each space has its own aroma, something that already exists before anyone intervenes. The task is not to impose a fragrance on top: it's to let that natural aroma exist, and carefully add something well-considered that is in harmony with what is already there.
It's an idea we recognize. Not to perfume for the sake of perfuming; first, sense the space, and then, with intention, complement it.
Where to find him
Studio and work: Pedro Reyes, Mexico City
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