AGE: 29
BASED IN: New York
Jesús Hilario-Reyes describes themself as an “anti-disciplinary artist.” Moving fluidly between performance, sound, video, and sculpture, they are inspired by queer rave culture, migration, Western carnivals, and the traces that movement leaves behind. Their work can take the form of a vinyl installed on the floor of a club for one sweaty night or a sculpture inspired by the hurricane-worn mangrove forests of Hilario-Reyes’s native Puerto Rico. The artist has performed at venues including Documenta, the Kitchen, Gladstone Gallery, and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago.
Describe one work you’ve made that captures who you are as an artist.
Honestly, I’d hope that I don’t make such a work. I feel like the postmortem of that would be crazy.
Tell us about a teacher who changed the way you think about art.
This moment, which occurred during my graduate studies, came after a semester in which the sculpture faculty had been asking me why I had not incorporated sound into the works I was developing. I would answer, “No shade, but I just had to catch the 4 a.m. Metro-North train to New Haven after playing a set in Brooklyn to make this studio visit. The last thing I want to do is bring the club to the gallery.” Nonetheless, I have to credit this epiphany to Sandra Burns, American Artist, Martin Kersels, and Aki Sasamoto. In one of my reviews, they asked me, “What do you do when the mix is not working? How do you change and adapt to something that needs to be so present? … Do that with your art.” That taught me a couple of things, one being: for things to “work” you should be most present with what is actually happening in front of you—how you freak “disharmonies” into function. Two, apply the spontaneity you practice on the decks to your studio practice. Make the decision, and see its outcome. Do not spend too much time wondering about the million outcomes you can get. And three, do not compartmentalize approaches in separate fields; allow them to inform one another, to merge into something new.
What is an underrated studio tool you can’t live without?
A quad-shot iced Americano and an electrical die grinder. The pneumatic version always felt so painful, at least for use on metals. It was diabolical and always felt like my hand was going to shake off the bone. Ever since I got an electrical die grinder, the more detailed touches are easier to manage.
What art-world trend would you like to see die out?
Let me preface this by saying I’m a firm believer that there is enough space for everyone, but here are a few… American flags, iron fences, pianos, and gay boys taking pictures of gay boys.
See CULTURED’s full 2025 Young Artists list and access other individual artist profiles here.
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