For more than 3,000 years, Mesoamerican peoples have transformed rock, bone, and other materials into statues and structures. In his 2015 Totem, above, Pedro Reyes (PAY-droh RAY-ehs) taps into this tradition. He stacks shaped pieces of volcanic stone—some rough, some polished—into a stylized column.
Originally trained as an architect, Reyes now works in a variety of media, including sculpture, video, and drawing. He uses art to promote activist messages, as well as to honor and preserve Indigenous and Mexican artistic practices. “By combining the ancient and the modern,” Reyes explains, “you can make something that is timeless.”