Leonora Carrington
British, Mexican
@ Public domain Leonora Carrington painting at her studio
Biography
Mary Leonora Carrington was a British and Mexican Surrealist painter and novelist. She lived most of her adult life in Mexico City and was one of the last surviving participants in the Surrealist movement of the 1930s.
Carrington was also a founding member of the women's liberation movement in Mexico during the 1970s.
Her paintings are populated by hybrid creatures, fantastical landscapes, and ritual-like scenes, often drawn from Celtic myths and personal symbolism.
Carrington rejected traditional gender roles, both in her life and her work, making her a key figure in feminist art history.
She also wrote novels and short stories that parallel her visual universe, blending fantasy and rebellion.
Long overshadowed by her male Surrealist peers, Carrington is now widely recognized as a central figure in modern and contemporary art.
"I suppose what I believe in is peaceful anarchy."
Did you know?
Leonora Carrington ran for president of Mexico as a conceptual artwork. While it wasn’t a real political campaign, she used the gesture to satirize power, patriarchy, and authority—promising, among other things, “free imagination for all.” It perfectly captures her lifelong refusal to separate art, magic, rebellion, and everyday life.