Laura Lima

Brazilian artist, lives and works in Rio de Janeiro. Living beings and architecture are some of the inte-gral elements of Laura Lima’s work, which includes in her craft as an artist the vital praxis of the time of experience and philosophical making, ranging means - from hand embroidery to activist organizations and open calls -, and using technical tools that expose a powerful contrast to your visual references. Transforming the space into a wide kinetic installation, in which the experience of the viewer within the built environment is central to the meaning of the work, is an example of a presentation created by Laura. From moving beings and daily signs, the work developed by the artist can be apprehended when in relation to a sui generis glossary created by the author. The use of living matters provokes tensions and changes, her installations often check and question the juxtaposition of solid or empty bodies that deliberate disturbances and dystopias. Games of scale and balance between the behavior of the land-scape, objects, people, animals and other living things are signifi cant exercises in the artist’s repertoire, which deals with sculpture as an apparatus of care for the volumes of life in its multiple layers. In Laura´s works, body is not performance, it is equivalent to architecture, landscape, experience and becomes an image. Man = fl esh / Woman = fl esh is a crossed territory. Going deeper into the whole of Laura Lima’s works is to notice the hybrid body and the weaving of rope, thread, coal and life. Work is desire and fear of seeing the obscure side of life.
 
In 2022, she prepares to participate in the Oxaca Biennial, Mexico. In 2021, she participated in the Lithuania Biennial, Sorocaba Frestas Triennial, state of São Paulo and the exhibition "Witch Hunt", Hammer Museum, among others. In 2020, she participated in the exhibition “Brasil! Focus on Contemporary Brazilian Art”, at the Museo Et-tore Fico, in Turin, Italy, and at the Sorocaba Triennial, São Paulo, Brazil. In 2019, she made the solo show “Balé Literal” at A Gentil Carioca, chosen as the 3rd Best Solo Exhibition in a gallery by the SeLecT Maga-zine, was present at the 14th Sharjah Biennial and in the Residency Program at Art Dubai Fair, both in the United Arab Emirates. She also performed the solo show “I hope this fi nds you well” at the Tanya Bonak-dar Gallery in New York, and participated of the collective show “O que não é fl oresta é prisão política”, at the Ocupação 9 de julho do Movimento dos Sem Teto do Centro (Occupation 9 de Julho Avenue - Movement of the Homeless), in São Paulo. She participated in numerous solo and collective exhibitions throughout her professional trajectory, among which, in 2018, she held the solo “Wrong Drawings”, at the Goodman Gallery, in South Africa, “Alfaiataria” at the Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo and “Cavalo Come Rei” at Fondazione Prada, Milan. In the same year, she joined the collectives “Divided We Stand” at the Busan Biennale, South Korea, “Lugares do Delírio” at SESC Pompéia, São Paulo and “Forecast/Living Matter” in Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin.
 
Her works are part of the collection of the Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo; Museu de Arte da Pampulha, Belo Horizonte; Instituto Inhotim, Brumadinho; Itaú Cultural, São Paulo; Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo; Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Switzerland; Bonniers Konsthall, Sweden; Bonnefantenmuseum, Maastricht; among others. Laura received the Marcantônio Vilaça Award in 2007, among others, to mention especially the Bonnefanten Award for Contemporary Art in 2014, the main art award given to an international artist in the Netherlands, an award previously granted to John Baldessari, Mary Heilmann and Cai Guo- Qiang, among others.

Co-founder of A Gentil Carioca, with Marcio Botner and Ernesto Neto, the artist is also engaged with feminist activism and matters about protection of wild animals in Brazil.

CV