We’ve been following the work of Jesus Mejia for some time now, and have enjoyed watching his practice evolve. One of the most exciting emerging voices working in Costa Rica today, Jesus first caught our attention with his tightly rendered, emotionally charged figurative paintings earning him the first prize winner of coveted The Francisco Amighetti National Visual Arts Awards in 2023. Since then, his work has continued to grow in confidence and conceptual ambition. We’re thrilled to now present his latest body of work, Dreamland, which forms the basis of a solo exhibition opening Thursday 5 June at 7pm at Galería Matices, located at the Costa Rica Country Club in Escazú. All Welcome - invitation below. 

The show comes on the heels of Jesus’ 3rd place award at the 2024 CROMA Biennial, also held at the Country Club, and marks a significant milestone in his career. Dreamland signals a bold shift away from the grounded realism of earlier series such as Bitácora del Sueño Eterno and the widely admired Levántate y Anda. Here, Jesus enters a more symbolic and speculative space, one shaped by dreams, sleep, and the surreal visual logic they produce.

This new work continues to exhibit precision and use of chiaroscuro, which have become signature elements in Jesus’ practice, but the tone is markedly different. Where past works often explored questions of belief, suffering, and transcendence through the body, Dreamland opens up space—both formally and emotionally—for ambiguity, reflection, and play.

I, Belinda Seppings (BS), had the pleasure of sitting down with Jesus Mejia (JM) ahead of the exhibition to speak about the thinking behind this new direction.

Interview Jesus Mejia Dreamland

BS: Your new series Dreamland marks a significant tonal departure from the grounded realism of earlier works. What drew you to this more symbolic, dreamlike space?

JM: For this group of work I wanted to explore the idea of sleeping, as well as the concept of sleep and dreams. That impulse came partly from the impact that these themes had on me during the previous series, Bitácora del Sueño Eterno. But I also felt the need to explore new chromatic possibilities in my practice—I wanted to explore the sensorial, the irrational, the fanciful. Colour, drapery, and the play of light and shadow all became central. Just like dreams, these are ethereal ideas that inspire us and transport us to strange universes where we connect and construct our own worlds.

BS: I'm interested in your poetic titles. As well as a tonal difference, the titles of this new series, such as El vuelo de una cometa, REM #2, Morfeo y sus estrellas, also suggest a poetic shift in atmosphere from earlier works.

Can you speak about the role of the poetic in this series?

Jesus Mejia, REM #2, Acrylic on canvas

JM: The titles come from the symbolic world in which the scenes unfold. I imagined Dreamland as a space where dreams materialise as colourful, glowing spheres that surround my figures—an imaginary cosmos born from the subconscious, referencing galaxies, planets, and myths tied to dreams and the idea of the world, the microworld, and the cosmos.

I want Dreamland to be a space where reason disappears to make room for fantasy, joy, and rest. The works are also inspired by moments from my childhood. I wanted to revisit the way I experienced sleep and dreams as a child—the worlds I could invent, the nightmares that cornered me, and the aspirations that slowly took shape in my imagination. El vuelo de una cometa refers to that: a moment of lift-off, of reaching for something just beyond our reality.

BS: While Dreamland is more fluid and dreamlike, it still carries your recognisable language—chiaroscuro, figurative precision, religious symbolism. Is this a break from past work, or a natural evolution?

JM: I think it’s a natural evolution within my visual language. For me, the process of artistic research means exploring new possibilities within my own framework. This series also reflects the emotional state I was in while painting it. I wanted a space to explore colour and ideas that could offer a kind of emotional rest.

BS: How do you want viewers to engage with these works? Should we read them as psychological spaces, metaphysical allegories, or imagined worlds?

JM: A little bit of all of that. When I became interested in dreams and sleep, I realised how abstract those ideas really are. Everyone dreams, hopes, and experiences different things while sleeping. So the exploration of form and light—especially from the irrational, and how that interacts with contemplation—is really the goal of the series. I want the viewer to have an experience with painting and form that, together, creates something symbolic and metaphysical.

Jesus Mejia, Morfeo y Sus Estrellas, Oil on canvas

BS: You’re showing Dreamland at Galería Matices following your recognition at the CROMA Biennial. Where do you see this work taking your practice next?

JM: My process is very contextual. I don’t like to stay in one series too long—once I feel I’ve reached where I wanted to go, I lose hyperfocus and start developing new ideas. But I do think this series consolidates my visual language. It’s a more personal and authentic version of the painting style I’ve been working on since my first series in 2020.

Conclusion

For me, it’s an exciting evolution. Jesus is a young artist who continues to push his own practice without losing the clarity and discipline that made his earlier work so compelling. This confident shift in tone is handled with sensitivity and control, and it’s a privilege to watch it unfold.

Two works that stand out for me are "REM 2", for its charged stillness and quiet psychological force, and "Ilusión Esmeralda", which offers something more meditative, more about presence than depiction. Together, they give a strong sense of the range that Dreamland is working within: from the intimate and figurative to the atmospheric and abstract.

Jesus Mejia,Ilusión Esmeralda, Oil on canvas

We’re proud to represent Jesus Mejia and to be sharing this new chapter of his work. Paintings from Jesus Mejia Dreamland are now available through our website, and we welcome enquiries for a PDF or more information.

Thank you, Jesus, for chatting with us about the series—and for inviting us into this beautifully imagined world.

Don't miss the opening of Jesus Mejia Dreamland Thursday 5th June, 7pm, Galería Matices. 

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Jesus Mejia Dreamland