NARANJO 141 is pleased to present Just Eles in THE NOOK, a solo exhibition of new works by Dani Moreno (b.1991, Mexico City). This mark’s the gallery’s first presentation in their new space aptly named THE NOOK and will be Moreno’s first exhibition with the gallery.

 Working as a graffiti artist in Mexico City, Moreno is always aware that police could be waiting around any corner: Might he have to pay a bribe, surrender to a search, or spend 32 hours in jail? In his latest body of work, a suite of ceramics that riff on tropes pulled from the streets, cartoons, and mythology in equal parts, Moreno conjures up the seedy world that the guerrilla artist must navigate in pursuit of his craft. Motifs are pulled from a landscape where corruption lurks and danger reigns: Stray, hairless dogs wait like Xolotl at the entrance to Mictlan, broken-down trains speed north of the border, and dilapidated facades of abandoned brick buildings pull us into an adrenaline-filled underworld where uncertainty is a constant. Vases adorned with screeching police cars, nightmarish tattoos, and anthropomorphic features threaten to come alive without warning, while flowers wilting serenely hint at a natural world concealed beneath the urban decay. Confronted with a virtuosity that belies the reputation of the vandal, the viewer is forced to question commonly held beliefs about what “legitimate art-making” really looks like.

Moreno is a self-taught artist who recently in 2023 has turned to his own ceramic practice, after spending 10 years in graffiti. He began his career and learned ceramics as a studio assistant for artist Fabian Ramirez. Moreno often works in collaboration with fellow graffiti artist and ceramicist Adrian Moreno. He was recently the subject of his first solo show at Vaya Vaya Gallery, Mexico City (2023). Moreno currently lives and works in Mexico City. 

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