Javier Calleja looking towards the camera

Javier Calleja

Wide-eyed portraits packed with wry humour and emotional candour.

“Every character is like my son. At the end of my life, I might have thousands of children.”

Calleja’s work is equally sarcastic as it is sensitive. His portraits depict stylised figures with exaggerated heads and big, melting eyes, reminiscent of Manga or Anime characters. Scrawled across their t-shirts, phrases like “FUCK YOU ALL” undercut their apparent cutesy innocence. Facial features with perfectly merged gradients are contrasted by flat, single-colour backgrounds and loose line-wor...

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Bio

Javier Calleja was born in 1971 in Malaga, Spain, where he continues to live and work.

Accolades

Awarded the DKV Best Spanish Artist Prize and the Idea Marset Prize, with works featured in collections including the Banco Sabadell Collection, Diputación de Málaga, DKV Collection, Market Collection, CAC Málaga, Unicaja Collection and that of Granada University.

Did you know?

Calleja resists the 'over-theorisation' of art, preferring to create works that can be easily accessed and understood by their viewer. This approach, paired with his distinctive aesthetic, has seen him amass a dedicated following of fans and collectors around the world - with every show a sure-fire sell out and waiting lists reaching far into the distance.

Follow up

@javicalleja

Collaborations with Javier Calleja

Avant Arte and Javier Calleja have one upcoming collaboration.