Ruas de São Paulo: A Survey of Brazilian Street Art

March 9, 2007

By, Benjamin Genocchio

Brazilian street artists, many of them school dropouts, have long covered the exposed walls and buildings of cities like Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo with their art. Though it is an illegal activity, it is rarely policed, and has flourished as a result. The first major New York gallery exhibition of Brazilian street art, at Jonathan LeVine, is a flamboyant powerhouse: the walls, floors and parts of the ceiling are decorated with a tangle of kaleidoscopic murals in tripped-out colors; rollicking spray-paint works on wood, clothing and canvas; and a surprising diversity of assemblages and sculpture made of found objects. (Read full article)