Madness Around Oscar Murillo: Why Collectors Are Fighting Over These Canvases
27.01.2026 - 10:20:42
Everyone is suddenly talking about Oscar Murillo – but is this wild, chaotic art pure genius or just expensive mess?
If you like your art glossy and perfect, brace yourself. Murillo’s world is all torn canvases, scribbled words, stains, and political tension – and collectors are paying top dollar for it.
You see these huge, battered-looking paintings on Instagram and think: "Wait, this is in a museum? This sells for serious cash?" Yes. And the story behind it is even more intense.
The Internet is Obsessed: Oscar Murillo on TikTok & Co.
Murillo’s work is made for the scroll. Massive canvases full of bold blacks, dirty yellows, urgent reds, taped fragments, and scrawled words that look like someone attacked the surface in a late-night meltdown.
People zoom in on the textures, the stitched-together strips of fabric, the stains and dust. The comments are split: half "masterpiece", half "my little cousin could do this" – which, in art-speak, means the hype is real.
Clips of his immersive installations, where he turns gallery spaces into chaotic social zones, are especially shareable. Think noisy, rough, and real – the total opposite of clean white-wall minimalism.
Want to see the art in action? Check out the hype here:
On social, Murillo gets labeled everything from "voice of a generation" to "overpriced scribbles". But that clash is exactly why the algorithm loves him – and why collectors keep watching.
Masterpieces & Scandals: What you need to know
To really get Oscar Murillo, you need a few key works on your radar. These are the pieces you will keep seeing in museum posts, gallery feeds, and art-investor chats.
- Large-scale abstract canvases (often untitled, stitched, and stained)
These are the iconic Murillo works: huge, rough, layered paintings built from sewn-together pieces of canvas, studio rags, dirt, and spontaneous marks. Words appear and disappear – brand names, slang, fragments in Spanish and English. They feel like mental maps of migration, class struggle, and everyday chaos. Museums and blue-chip galleries love hanging these in big, dramatic rooms. - "Frequencies" project (school desks and student drawings)
For this ongoing global project, Murillo sent canvas-covered school desks into classrooms around the world and let students draw, write, and scribble freely. The results – covered in doodles, slogans, and raw teenage thoughts – are later shown as powerful installations. It is part social experiment, part portrait of global youth, and it hits especially hard in videos and photos. - Immersive installations and performance-driven setups
In several shows, Murillo has turned galleries into something closer to a social confrontation than a quiet art space: crowded environments, noise, materials scattered or rearranged, sometimes even people hired or invited to occupy and activate the space. The message: art is not just something you stare at politely – it is labor, politics, migration, and conflict pushed right in front of you.
Murillo’s whole practice lives in that tension between "this looks like a studio accident" and "this is one of the most discussed painters of his generation". That friction is his superpower.
The Price Tag: What is the art worth?
Let us talk numbers – because the market for Oscar Murillo is not playing around.
His big, layered abstractions have reached serious auction levels. Public sales have pushed into very high ranges for major canvases, putting him firmly in the "Big Money" conversation among younger contemporary artists. We are talking record prices that made headlines in the auction world and signaled that top-tier collectors see him as long-term, not just a quick flip.
Compared to many artists of his generation, Murillo is already sitting in the blue-chip neighborhood: represented by major international gallery David Zwirner, collected by heavyweight museums, and frequently included in star-packed group shows. That combination – institutional backing plus auction heat – is exactly what market-watchers call a strong signal.
Is every piece a jackpot? Of course not. But the top works – large, complex paintings with museum-level provenance – are treated as high-value trophies. Smaller works, works on paper, and early pieces move at lower but still serious price points, often through galleries rather than public sales.
Behind the price, there is a story that matters. Murillo was born in Colombia and grew up in the UK after migrating as a child, coming from a working-class background. His rise from factory-town life to global art stages makes his success feel earned, not manufactured. He has also landed major awards and biennial appearances, including representing his country on big international platforms and being featured in high-visibility institutional shows.
In other words: this is not a one-season hype painter. This is a career that is being built brick by brick – exhibitions, prizes, critical attention, and yes, those headline auction results.
See it Live: Exhibitions & Dates
Want to stand in front of the work instead of just double-tapping it? Smart move. Murillo’s art hits differently when you see the raw surfaces and physical energy up close.
Here is the reality check: exhibition schedules change fast, and not every show is announced far in advance. If you are looking for specific upcoming dates, some listings may simply not be public yet.
No current dates available that can be confirmed with full accuracy right now from open sources. That does not mean there is nothing happening – just that you should always cross-check the latest info.
For the most reliable updates on current or upcoming exhibitions, dive straight into the official channels:
Tip for travel planners and art tourists: many museum-level group shows featuring Murillo get announced only a short time before opening. If you are heading to major art cities, it is worth doing a quick search with his name plus the city to see if you can catch a surprise appearance.
The Verdict: Hype or Legit?
So where do we land on Oscar Murillo – just another overvalued name, or someone you actually need on your radar?
If you are into smooth, decorative canvas vibes, his work may feel aggressive, even uncomfortable. The surfaces are restless, the themes are heavy: migration, class, language, labor, identity. But that is exactly why museums, curators, and critics take him seriously – and why the market has locked in.
From an art hype perspective, he ticks all the boxes: visually strong, instantly recognizable, deeply tied to conversations about global inequality and post-colonial realities. From a collector perspective, he sits in that high-risk, high-reward zone of an artist who already has blue-chip backing but is still evolving fast.
For you as a viewer, here is the bottom line:
- If you love art that looks good on camera but also punches you in the stomach a little, Murillo is a must-see.
- If you are watching the market, he is firmly in the "serious player" tier – not cheap, not casual, and closely tracked by big collectors.
- If you just want a name to drop in the next "who is actually important right now" conversation, this is one you should absolutely know.
Love it or hate it, Oscar Murillo’s work will keep appearing in your feed, in museum programs, and in auction reports. The chaos on his canvases is not going away – and neither is the conversation around them.
