Matías Sauter Morera / Pegamachos
Craig Krull Gallery / Opening Reception / Saturday, March 22 from 3-6pm
Craig Krull Gallery is pleased to present Pegamachos, a series of A.I.-generated images and accompanying written narratives by Costa Rican artist Matías Sauter Morera. The exhibition will be on view in the gallery from March 22 to May 3, with an artist talk on March 22 at 3pm, and a reception to follow from 4 to 6pm.
Sauter Morera uses A.I. tools and fictional narratives to reimagine a now legendary moment of queer history in Costa Rica, when straight men from rural areas—particularly cowboys from the Guanacaste Coast—discreetly hooked up with young gay men, often from the city. There are few records of this clandestine past, and Pegamachos is “an example of the use of the latest technology in the exploration of the queer imaginary,” Getty’s Curator of Photographs Paul Martineau told ArtNews in a discussion about the museum’s acquisition of Sauter Morera’s work—their first A.I. image.
Sauter Morera illustrates sensual scenes where cowboys caress; men in pastel suits embrace; and young men stare down the viewer, challenging and inviting. In this context, A.I. provides a way for the artist to tell stories without compromising individual privacy. “Since the pegamachos culture remains hidden, these A.I. images serve as a mimicry of photography, a fiction, and a medium through which I can imagine and construct a parallel history,” the artist explains.
Pegamachos becomes a fantastical archive with a vivid vision of the gay community in Costa Rica during the socially conservative 1970s and 80s, raising questions about gendered expectations, freedom of expression, relationships between gay men, and the historical invisibility of LGBTQ+ individuals.
/ About
Based between Berlin and his native Costa Rica, Matías Sauter Morera (b. 1986) uses photography to confront and create new realities. Specializing in art-documentary essays, portraiture, and fashion, he has been commissioned by renowned brands and published in international magazines like Condé Nast Traveler, Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, and Cosmopolitan.
Sauter Morera's photographs have been shown across Latin America, and his Pegamachos series has garnered recent international attention: pieces from this series reside in the collections of Beth Rudin deWoody and the J. Paul Getty Museum, and Getty Curator of Photographs Paul Martineau is including a “Pegamachos” image in his upcoming exhibition, Queer Lens: A History of Photography, on view from June 17 to September 28, 2025.