Mustafá Abelar began drawing as a child, even though he doesn’t come from a family of artists. After learning that he could actually become a professional artist, he enrolled in the National School of Plastic Arts of the UNAM in 1994.

He was taught by Luis Nishizawa Flores (a renowned painter, with a museum in Toluca, and whose works are displayed in the Museum of Modern Arts), and studied painting with Herlinda Sánchez. He was also a student of Pedro Ascencio (wood engraving) and Lilia Lemoine (sculpting). The teacher who influenced him the most was Pedro Ascencio, who taught him drawing for 2 years in the San Carlos Academy –also belonging to the ENAP-UNAM.

Mustafá got a scholarship for a sculpting contest in Manitoba, Canada, but he couldn’t afford the cost of the trip. He was selected, with honorable mention, for the first bi-annual Exhibition of Historic Painting at the Querétaro Art Museum.

Mustafá appears on the XIII edition of Conaculta’s Illustrators Catalog.

He also worked for 10 years at an institute that helps children with cancer. He made drawings and designs for calendars, appointment books, cards, posters and jewelry for companies like Coca Cola, UPS, Aeroméxico, Pineda Covalín, Ford, Sabritas, Scribe, and others.

He is now the Social Media Manager at Dilo con Gatos (Say it with Cats), where he works with his wife Mónica Padilla.

Mustafá enjoys the graphical power of some really good Manga artists, like Shirow Masamune, Hayao Miyazaki, Mamoru Oshii, Katsuhiro Otomo, Kosuke Fujishima. His favorite artists and sources of inspiration are: Velázquez, Camile Claudell, Rothko, Klee, Schiele, Miguel Angel, Leonora Carrington, Tiziano, Greco, Calder, Twombly, Motherwell, Picasso, Matisse, Toledo; all rupestrian paintings; Asirian, Helenic Greek and Romanic arts… and –obviously!– Mónica Padilla.