Os Gêmeos - Latin America New York Thursday, May 29, 2014 | Phillips

Create your first list.

Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.

  • Provenance

    Galeria Fortes Vilaça, São Paulo
    Tiroche DeLeon Collection

  • Exhibited

    Curitiba, Museu Oscar Niemeyer, Vertigem, October 2008- February 2009, then traveled to São Paulo, Museu de arte Brasiliera (October 2009- December 2009), Rio de Janeiro, Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil (January 2010- March 2010), Brasília, CCBB Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil (March 2010- May 2010)

  • Catalogue Essay

    "We never do anything twice. We always try out something new and look for new possibilities of expression." Os Gêmeos

    Brazilian brothers Otavio and Gustavo Pandolfo, best known as Os Gêmeos, are a force in graffiti and urban art. They depict their visions in surreal paintings, sculptures, and installations with human figures, exploding bursts of color, and installations with rustic interiors evoking the imagery of the Brazilian countryside. Os Gêmeos draw from their surroundings, incorporating these elements to forge a unique visual style. Their narrative is a creative synthesis of their everyday lives in Brazil, particularly their neighborhood in São Paulo. Common themes in their oeuvre include carnivals, music, and folk art, some of which are often based on the twins’ own photographs.

    Os Gêmeos date their artistic beginnings to 1987, when hip-hop music gradually became more popular in Brazil. The music and images of youth dancing and spraying graffiti, transmitted through photographs and films, left an indelible mark on the twins. In the late 1980s, Brazilian spray paint was expensive and inferior in quality, leading the artists to improvise with different types of materials. They began executing graffiti and murals with house paint, brushes, and rollers. Today, they are two of the most prominent figures in public art around the world.

    The present lot, Untitled, exemplifies their quirky style with a depiction of a boy with an innocent expression standing between two found window shutters. Naïve and childlike, the boy can be seen as a depiction of youth in Brazil through a socioeconomic lens. The yellow palette of the boy’s skin, which has become a trademark of their work, is a characteristic the artists identify with positivity. Ultimately, the figure portrays the illusory world that inhabits their creative vision, at once both symbolic and hopeful.

  • Artist Biography

    Os Gêmeos

    Brazilian • 1974

    Born Otavio and Gustavo Pandolfo, Os Gêmeos ('The Twins') are graffiti artists from São Paulo whose style is influenced by both Brazilian tradition and hip hop culture. Their work often features yellow-skinned figures but is otherwise diverse, ranging from interpretations of Brazilian folklore to social and political commentary. With the advent of American hip hop culture in Brazil in the late 1980s, the identical twins became interested in breakdancing. This led them to begin emulating New York graffiti art they had seen in photos before starting to consciously incorporate elements of Brazilian culture into their art and develop their own style. Their creative output graces walls across the world, from Scotland to Los Angeles, and also includes sculptures and installations.

    View More Works

24

Untitled

2009
mixed media on found wood, in 3 parts
overall 79 x 88 in. (200.7 x 223.5 cm.)
This work is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity issued by Galeria Fortes Vilaça.

Estimate
$90,000 - 120,000 

Sold for $97,500

Contact Specialist
Laura González
Head of Latin America Sale
lgonzalez@phillips.com
+1 212 940 1216

Latin America

New York Auction 29 May 2014 4pm