Biography

Raúl Cantú is a photographer and visual artist originally from Saltillo, Mexico. A constant for him has been artistic experimentation using technology. His professional career focuses, on the one hand, on visual communication and advertising, and on the other, on art, an area where his extensive research on the possibilities of the image has led him to exhibit his work in several countries. He has been published in specialised art magazines and various books and has received national and international awards. In addition, he teaches photographic production workshops.

Raúl says “My work converges in the field of optical unrealities, parallel worlds, repetitions and alternate scenarios. My artistic discourse encompasses the contemplative action of combining time, the eternal and the fleeting, in search of the magical quality of reality. The beams of light intertwined in the glow of the shadows are nothing more than the manifestation of the vertigo of existence. I use technology as a vehicle within the conceptualization of my work”.

For some years now, he has had an approach with software that uses artificial intelligence tools and generative algorithms for the production of images. It currently applies this technology for various tasks such as: -Creation of alternate scenarios produced by Artificial Intelligence and Generative Antagonic Networks, -Creation of virtual brushes where intelligent algorithms are used for image processing, and -Text Interpretation a Image using code.

The “Manipulation of the Instant” was the series with post-produced fractals that catapulted Raúl to international galleries and exhibitions, thereby achieving exhibitions in the United States, Italy, Austria, Canada and France. They continued with some other series based on fractals such as: "Topography of infinity", "Explorations" high-speed photography series of colliding liquid drops such as: "Liquid Expressions", "Ether" macrophotography of nature with the use of ancient optics adapted to digital cameras, "Fragmentations" an impressionist series with a multiple exposure technique, infrared landscape photography for "The invisible light" and "Poetics", the latter with the use of specialized Lensbaby optics, a brand used by prestigious artists of the lens in the world and of which Raúl is ambassador in Mexico.

Raúl points out that the act of taking a photograph is not only through a camera. Making a 3D render is photographic, exploring in a world of algorithms or in the infinity of fractals and finding yourself in a fascinating place and capturing it is a photographic act and even a screenshot with a cell phone is.

The work of Raul Cantu was been exhibited from 2010 to date in tens of exhibitions, and has been in major international exhibitions in cities like New York , Paris, Florence, Ferrara, Spain ,Toronto and Las Vegas in addition to several mayor cities in Mexico. International magazines and catalogs published articles and interviews about Raul such as ArtisSPECTRUM Magazine, Arts & Antiques Magazine, ArtTour International ,Top 60 Masters of Contemporary Art 2013 Catalog, among others. His work has been published also in some books covers and interiors. 

Exhibitions

- Ceñir lo Yermo / Octubre 2021 – Abril 2022 / Festival Internacional Cervantino /Museo Palacio de los Poderes, Guanajuato, Guanajuato, México.

- Momentos del Infinito / Enero 2019 – A la fecha / William Carr Galley, Las Vegas Nevada.

- Tasar el Humor (Colectiva) en el marco del Programa de Fotografía Contemporánea / Noviembre 2018 / Museo de las Artes Gráficas, Saltillo, Coahuila.

- 50 años de hermandad con Austin TX (Colectiva) / Julio 2018 / Galería Albricci, Saltillo, Coahuila.

- Maravillas Naturales de México (Colectiva) / Julio 2018 / Centro Cultural Casa Purcell, Saltillo, Coahuila.

- FocoMx / Tercer Concurso de Fotografía Contemporánea de México (colectiva) / Mayo 2018 /Foto Museo 4 Caminos / Ciudad de México.

- La luz invisible (individual) / Marzo 2018 / Museo de Artes Gráficas / Saltillo, Coahuila, México.

- Contemporary Photography (Colectiva) / Noviembre 2017 a Enero de 2018/ Mahlstedt Gallery / New York, Estados Unidos.

- Tercer Concurso de Fotografía Contemporánea (Colectiva) / Noviembre 2017 / Fototeca de Nuevo León, Centro de las Artes, Monterrey NL., México.

- Coahuila fotografía (Colectiva) / Agosto 2017 a Octubre de 2017 / Galería Urbana Rejas del Ateneo Fuente / Saltillo, Coahuila, México.

- William Carr Gallery (Colectiva) / Agosto 2017 / Las Vegas, Nevada, Estados Unidos.

- Exposición en la II Bienal de Arte ExATEC de Monterrey (Colectiva) / Febrero 2017 / Galerías del Centro Cultural de Nuevo Laredo / Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, México.

- Habitantes del Cerdo (fotografía de retrato) /Febrero 2017/ El Cerdo de Babel / Saltillo, Coahuila, México.

- Mirar Adentro (Colectiva)/ Enero 2017 / Asociación de la Plástica de Garza García, NL / Pinacoteca de NL/ Monterrey, Nuevo León.

- Exposición en la II Bienal de Arte ExATEC de Monterrey (Colectiva) / Noviembre 2016 / Centro Cultural Arte AC / Monterrey, Nuevo León.

- Kikapú Dos Miradas (Colectiva) / Noviembre 2016 / Centro Cultural Edilberto y Lili y Rogelio Montemayor / Sabinas, Coahuila, México.

- Norte-sur (Colectiva) / Arte Gari / Octubre 2016 / NH Collection / Monterrey, Nuevo León, México.

- México en una imagen, Lo hecho en México (Colectiva) / Enero 2016 / Galería Habitar la línea, Madrid, España.

- México en una imagen, Lo hecho en México (Colectiva) / Diciembre 2015 / Museo Soumaya / Ciudad de México.

- Contempo 2015, (Colectiva) / Agosto 2015 / Centro Cultural San Ángel / Ciudad de México.

- Kikapú, el entorno de un guerrero (Individual) / Agosto 2015 / Museo Nacional de Culturas Populares, Ciudad de México.

- International Artists in Louvre Museum – Carrousel du Louvre (Colectiva) / June 2015 / Paris, Francia.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/raul_cantu_visual_artist/

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/RaulCantuART/

Dear Raúl Cantú, could you briefly tell us about yourself?

R: I am a photographer and visual artist based in Saltillo, Mexico. A constant for me has been artistic experimentation using technology. My professional career is focused, at first, on visual communication and advertising, and secondly, on art, an area where I investigate the possibilities of the image - this has led me to exhibit my work in various countries. I have been published in specialized art magazines and various books and have received some national and international awards. In addition, I teach photographic production workshops.

What life experiences influence your artistic works?

R: I am an introverted and very emotional person. I like finding alternate scenarios of the reality itself. Many times in everyday life, extraordinary things happen that almost nobody sees, and it excites me to imagine and create things from another perspective, that’s why I like to experiment with photographic and technological tools, to try to alter reality and adapt it to my artistic vision, or better to say I am in search of its magical qualities.

Do you have projects that you start from scratch without knowing how the final will look like, or it happens to have works that are completely different from the start idea?

R: My series always start from experimentation and generally I don't get rid of aestheticisms that I define myself, and when I find a visually coherent path that matches my statement, I exhaustively work on it. What I seek in each series is to communicate something, finally there is only me and what I think is representative for my work. From the beginning of each series, I generally have defined where I want to go.

What advice would you give to young artists that haven't yet decided their paths?

R: Firstly, to know the medium in which they want to express themselves; the technique is important, then work based on a conceptual objective... which is to say, these can be inner concerns of the artist or outer matters such as questions about situations that occur around themselves. Then work hard to achieve it, it's important to consider that there are projects that can take time to complete.

I see in your latest works a lot of AI generated gloomy images of villages/towns filled with fog and somehow a sort of nothingness that looks like scenes from Silent Hill. I like the mix of colors and the feelings it generates.

R: I have touched on the theme of loneliness in various parts of my work and in the mist itself there is a characteristic of uncertainty towards what is to come. I think that many of us are very lonely people, we are overwhelmed by many things, we live in a world where competition is voracious, we step on each other even if we hurt ourselves and we do not know what the future holds.

What AI tools do you use?

R: I have used several tools like Disco Diffusion, Midjourney, Night Café and Artbreeder, among others.

Do you use certain strings of words to get as close as possible to the desired image? Do you use photos, as well, as input for the AI? What other tools you have in your routine for the digital artworks?

R: I use a combination of things: my images, graphics from other places and obviously the words. Artificial Intelligence algorithms have evolved a lot in the last year and the possibilities of making combinations are infinite.

Additionally, I use Adobe Photoshop, ON1 Photo suite for RAW processing and effects, NIK, Topaz, Luminar Neo, Lumenzia Panel, Studio Artist, and many other tools.

In the Algoritmia you have a series of photos with some old houses. Lots of them look like paintings. Some of them take the viewer into a post-nuclear-like time frame and make one wonder if you could share some clues on the ideas behind?

R: In this case I am not talking about post-apocalyptic times, rather it is the recurrence of the theme of loneliness expressed in another way. The houses also represent a refuge, even if they are apparently abandoned, there is always the possibility and hope of a place to shelter.

Also, in the same Algoritmia series you have some black & white digital images that somehow resemble long-exposure street photography scenes, but rather in a grotesque-like style. I love these ones, mostly because I, as a viewer, can imagine a lot of sceneries here. Could you describe more about this particular faction?

R: These images speak of the disconnection that we fear as humans. We are alone even surrounded by other people or crowds. I like the theme of blurring, as if it were a long exposure sweep, because it really doesn't matter who we are, we are ghosts and everyone can identify themselves with a character in the frame.

The water scenery collection, with the long exposure effect or with the twirled waves, carry my thoughts to Jules Verne’s novels. I noticed some with nicely build trees too. Are there any links between the sets, at least in these two, since in the previously mentioned one I can see some common elements?

R: Those giant waves reflect the endless vortex that we humans like to get into, we don't end a pandemic and start a war, it's somehow the reflection of the uncertainty. The landscapes of the shores with calm waters is precisely the opposite, it is like a safe and quiet place where we would like to be. On the other hand, trees are solitary beings, like us.

There is a play of different painting styles in some of your digital artworks. These were done with GAN (Generative Adversarial Network) as I noticed. Could you share some thoughts on such neural networks? What do you normally use? Are there any precise skills one needs to have, to try something similar?

R: As I mentioned earlier, the tools and derived results I get are due to a combination of words, modifiers, and reference images that guide the algorithm towards a certain direction. The algorithm interprets the inputs that the user gives, sometimes things turn out well, and so many times they don't. When a visual artist operates a tool of this type, emotions are also included, the result, even if it’s generated through generative networks, depends on who is behind guiding the results.

The skills that are required, well, each artist has their intentions, their statement and their baggage of knowledge, what ultimately matters is the final result and what the pieces communicate.

We all have access to cameras, just a few make art.

You have a certain taste for infrared photography, some done in a poetic manner, and as an inspiration for the AI generated landscapes, while other wonderful shots look like they belong to the realm of dreams. Do you find interest in specific subjects and location? Do you use a particular setup?

R: Infrared photography is for me a way to reinterpret reality, something that I have been looking for a long time in my artistic production, I generally like lonely landscapes, I love generating mystical and dreamlike atmospheres, poetry comes in the interpretation that each person gives to the image, but for me they are calm places with their various symbolisms and meanings. I additionally use Lensbaby optics as they give an ethereal touch that subjectively complements these spaces.

What other photographic styles fit your artistic visions? For instance, I spotted some great portraits, such as “Catrina Monarca”. Could you share some thoughts about the story behind such portraits?

R: I love doing portraits too, and as we know the catrinas are entities that exalt the culture that we have in Mexico towards death. Monarch butterflies pass through the region where I live every year. I have in mind to develop, soon, a small series of catrinas combining photography with Generative Adversorial Networks.

I see trees, as a leitmotif in many of your works, some of them resembling the same type (e.g. shape). Is there a particular connection to them?

R: Yes, trees are solitary beings full of energy, I think that explains why they are often present in my work.

Overall, lots of your artworks drove my mind to T.S. Eliot’s poem “The Waste Land”. Lots of images could find common motifs in there. Could you describe to our readers some of your feelings that arouse from your “ars poetica” converted into images?

R: My work converges in the field of optical unrealities, parallel worlds, repetitions and alternate scenarios. My artistic discourse encompasses the contemplative action of combining time, the eternal and the fleeting, in search of the magical quality of reality. The beams of light intertwined in the glow of the shadows are nothing more than the manifestation of the vertigo of existence. I use technology as a vehicle within the conceptualization of my work.

I see that you tried almost everything in photography, from macro and wildlife to landscape, from multiple exposure and light painting to astrophotography and infrared, from portrait to product, etc. You experiment a lot and you are more prone to vivid colors instead of BW. What is the style that is the closest to your heart?

R: I feel like I've experimented a lot in photography because I didn't want to be limited to being able to express myself, at first I was more inclined to color, but I love black and white too. Currently I use a more neutral palette because I feel that it matches more with the semiotics of my images. The series are somehow begging me for that, I don´t feel tied to anything.

Do you have a particular style that you love but you haven't tried yet?

R: No, I am happy with what I am currently doing.

What setups do you normally use in your photography?

R: I use a lot of photographic techniques, it's a question I couldn't answer.

Are there specific photographers that inspire you? 

R: Didier Massard, Francesca Woodman, Alexey Titarenko, Olga Karlovac, Phil Mackay, Chema Madoz among others.

What makes you happy in photography?

R: That it allows me to express myself as I want.

Do you have a forthcoming project? Could you tell us in a phrase what it is about?

R: I am very happy working with photography, post-production tools, algorithms and various Artificial Intelligence applications, I have experienced something with Augmented Reality and Video Mapping, and I would like to work on a conceptual installation in the short term.

What hobbies do you have?

R: I love cooking on the grill 😊.