Francis Alÿs (Antwerp, 1956) is a Belgian artist living in Mexico. His work arises from the interdisciplinary space shared by art, architecture and social practices. In 1986, he left his profession as an architect behind and relocated to Mexico City. Since then, he has created performance art and a diverse body of work, exploring urban and geopolitical tensions. His works examine the tension between politics and poetics, individual actions and impotence, through a wide range of techniques ranging from painting to performance. Alÿs frequently represents ‘walks’ – or ‘walks’ that resist being subdued by the common space. The cyclical repetitions and the mechanics of progression and regression also communicate the character of Alÿs actions and his mythology (in his work he usually contrasts geological and technological time through social and land-based practices that examine memory individual and collective mythology). At times Alÿs has used rumor as an artistic tool, disseminating ephemeral works, based on practice, by word of mouth and through storytelling.