Dr Lakra Explained

Jerónimo López Ramírez (born 1972), known as Dr Lakra, is a Mexican artist and tattooist based in Oaxaca. He has shown work internationally in exhibitions including at Tate Modern^[1] and Barbican Centre^[2] in London, Drawing Center in New York City,^[3] in Mexico, and Yokohama Museum of Art in Japan. His works are held in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, Hammer Museum and Walker Art Center.

Work

Apart from tattooing, his art involves embellishing found images and objects—for instance, dolls, old medical illustrations, and pictures in 1950s Mexican magazines—with macabre or tattoo-style designs.^[4]

Family

He is the son of the graphic artist Francisco Toledo^[5] and Elisa Ramírez Castañeda, a Mexican anthropologist and poet. He is also the brother of Natalia Toledo (poet) and Laureana Toledo (artist).^[6]

Publications

• Los Dos Amigos (2007) – with Abraham Cruzvillegas

Exhibitions/projects

• 1993 Dr Lakra, Kunsthaus Tacheles, Berlin
• 2005 Los Dos Amigos, Dr. Lakra & Abraham Cruzvillegas, (MACO), Oaxaca, Mexico
• 2010 Dr Lakra, The Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), Boston, MA
• 2011 Dr Lakra, Amparo Museum (museo Amparo), Puebla, Puebla, Mexico.
• 2011 Dr Lakra, Museo de Arte Contemporaneo de Monterrey (MARCO) Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico.
• 2012 Mexican Demons and Dancing Skeletons, Holstebro Art Museum, Denmark

Group exhibitions

• Stolen Bike, Andrew Kreps Gallery, New York City
• Pin Up: Contemporary Collage and Drawing, Tate Modern, London, December – January 2005^[1]
• Pierced Hearts and True Love, Drawing Center, New York City^[3]
• Goth: Reality of the Departed World, Yokohama Museum of Art, Yokohama, Japan, 2008, curated by Eriko Kimura
• Magnificent Obsessions: The Artist as Collector, Barbican Centre, London, February–May 2015^[7]

Collections

Dr Lakra's work is held in the following permanent collections:

• Museum of Modern Art^[8]
• Hammer Museum^[9]
• Walker Art Center^[10]

Notes and References

1. Web site: 2023-08-04. Pin-Up: Contemporary Collage and Drawing – Press Release. Tate.
2. Web site: 2023-08-04. London Diary - Magnificent Obsessions: The Artist as Collector at Barbican. 26 April 2015. The Culturist.
3. News: 2023-08-04. A Tattoo Master, Off the Street, Into the Gallery. 24 March 2011. The New York Times.
4. https://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/collective/A12505457 Dr Lakra
5. http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/nacion/143121.html Alumnos amagan con ´tomar´ la Universidad de Oaxaca
6. http://www.artspawn.com/artists/Dr._Lakra Biography of Dr. Lakra at Artspawn
7. Web site: 2023-08-04. 'Magnificent Obsessions', magnificent show. 16 February 2015. Apollo Magazine.
8. Web site: The Collection | MoMA. The Museum of Modern Art.
9. Web site: Press release, hammer.ucla.edu. https://web.archive.org/web/20080525122940/http://www.hammer.ucla.edu/press_release_51.htm. dead. May 25, 2008.
10. Web site: Acquisitions and Gifts: Walker Art Center Annual Report 2005-2006. annualreport.walkerart.org.