Alchemy—the quest to transform base metals into gold—is an age-old fascination and one that has beguiled countless artists over the generations. Latin American artists, in particular, have harnessed alchemical themes as a conduit to express the region’s fusion of cultures, histories, and myths.

A new exhibition, “ Constellations and Drifts: Art from Latin America in the FEMSA Collection ,” on view at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Monterrey (through August 9, 2026), in Mexico, draws out how alchemy, transformation, and transmutation have inspired artists f rom Surrealist Remedios Varo to contemporary sculptor Iván Navarro.

Installation view of “Constellations and Drifts: Art from Latin America in the FEMSA Collection” at the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Monterrey, Monterrey, México, 2026.

“The blending of pre-Columbian cultural and religious traditions with four centuries of Spanish colonial influence formed the basis of what we come to understand as alchemy in this region, one rooted in deep…