Nohemí Pérez
Nohemí Pérez was born in Tibú, Colombia in 1964.
She lives and works in Bogotá.
Nohemí Pérez’s work explores the deep connection — and conflict — between humans and nature. Originary from the Catatumbo region in Northern Colombia, she draws from the complex history of this border territory, where dense jungle meets centuries of struggle. Catatumbo is a place of extraordinary biodiversity, but also of overlapping forces, all shaping the land in different ways. Using drawing, painting, textiles, and installation, Pérez reimagines this landscape through the lenses of architecture, cinema, and sociology. Her large-scale charcoal works depict forests that seem to breathe, burn, or disappear, blending natural and human elements into dreamlike yet unsettling compositions. Shadows of buildings, machinery, and figures emerge within these dense landscapes, revealing traces of conflict and survival. Her embroidered textile pieces evoke both fragility and resilience, much like the territory she portrays.
A key aspect of her practice is the idea that nature is not separate from human history but an active participant in it. In line with Bruno Latour’s vision that “we have never been modern,” Pérez challenges the notion that landscapes are passive or secondary to human events. Her work reveals how nature and history are deeply intertwined — how the jungle itself bears the marks of war, industry, and migration. Pérez’s work is also deeply personal. With indigenous roots, she reconstructs the memory of her homeland through the stories of those who have lived and endured in Catatumbo. By layering history, geography, and emotion, she creates a new way of seeing the land — one that moves beyond conflict to recognize its cultural and ecological richness.
Pérez has had solo exhibitions at the Grand Café, Saint-Nazaire (2024); artpace, San Antonio, (2023); SCAD Museum of Art, Savannah (2021); Barranquilla Museum of Modern Art (2012); NC-Arte, Bogotá (2012); Universidad de Salamanca Cultural Centre, Bogotá (2005), and the Cartagena Museum of Modern Art (2003).
Her work has also been presented in many international collective shows: Kunstinstituut Melly, Rotterdam (2026); the Ljubljana Biennale (2025); the 1st Islamic Arts Biennale, Jeddah (2025); Kunsthaus Baselland, Basel (2025); Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid (2024); Museo Jumex, Mexico City (2024); the 1st Bienial of the Amazons, Belem (2023); Museo Amparo, Mexico City (2021); the 15th Cuenca Biennial (2021); MO.CO., Montpellier (2020); Museo de Arte Moderno, Medellín (2019); Museo Universidad de Antioquía, Medellín (2019); Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, (2019); Museo de Arte Miguel Urrutia (MAMU), Bogotá (2019); 10th SIART International Biennial, La Paz (2018); among others.
The work of Nohemí Pérez is part of institiutionals collections such as the MCA Chicago; the Banco de la República Art Collection, Bogotá; the Kadist Collection, Paris/San Francisco; the ARCO Foundation, Madrid; and the TBA21 Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Collection, Madrid/Córdoba.
