Pedro Reyes

Pedro Reyes is a Visiting Lecturer in the Art, Culture, and Technology Program at MIT’s School of Architecture + Planning. His work bridges art, activism, and education to address global issues like gun violence, drug trafficking, and environmental sustainability. Notable projects include Palas por Pistolas (transforming firearms into shovels for tree-planting) and Disarm (converting military weapons into musical instruments). Reyes has collaborated with institutions worldwide, including the Guggenheim Museum and Venice Biennale, and co-taught MIT’s Reverse Engineering of Warefare course. His practice spans sculpture, installation art, and participatory workshops, emphasizing art’s role in fostering social change. Exhibitions highlight his exploration of conflict resolution through humor, civic engagement, and material transformation.

Reyes’ educational background is not explicitly detailed in the texts, but his projects reflect interdisciplinary training in art and social sciences. Key collaborations include work with Carla Fernández and MIT’s Doris Sommer. His installations such as Pharmasphere (drug history critique) and Urban Genome Project (city design analysis) demonstrate a focus on systemic societal challenges. The Sanatorium series explores mental health through participatory therapies, merging art with psychological practice. His work has been featured in venues like Whitechapel Gallery and dOCUMENTA 13, underscoring his global impact.

Labs/teams include his studio Cocolab, which develops collaborative projects like the mobile Disarm workshop. Future directions emphasize expanding participatory art models for civic innovation, as seen in the Atlas for Civic Innovation project. Despite no listed grants or awards, his exhibitions and commissions reflect sustained institutional recognition.