Mounted on the exterior of Galeria Rodo Padilla, a ceramic blue bus jammed with waving, chubby-cheeked passengers in sombreros welcomes visitors. Walking inside the gallery in Tlaquepaque, I see more sweetly absurdist sculptures from one of Guadalajara’s most beloved artists. I feel as if I’m stepping inside the mind of an especially imaginative child.

Often surreal and always whimsical, Rodo’s art expresses both the essence of childhood and his relationship with his God. A turquoise-haired caped cherub rides a colourful paper airplane his father made for him, “trusting the winds from the sky will take him places he never imagined” (as the artist’s interpretive panel explains). We’re meant to read “father” as both Rodo — his children’s doodles inspired many of his works — and as the Holy Father, bestowing humanity with the gift of imagination.