marcelo silveira

Marcelo Silveira's  (b. 1962, Gravatá, Brazil) work questions and challenges long-established categories related to art, such as sculpture, folk art, craftwork and collecting. His works often depart from the idea of materiality and how anything can become a medium, spearheading his use of wood, leather, paper, metal, plastic and glass amongst many other materials. Silveira's investigation also address the idea of the use and purpose of materials or objects, which he suggests can be defined by a common, socially determined repertoire  –as is the case for bottles or glasses– and uprooted by recreating familiar shapes using unexpected materials. 

Additionally, the concept of collecting is central to the artist's practice, with a constant play between production and appropriation. Silveira addresses the question in numerous ways, whether it be by presenting an accumulation of found artifacts such as postcards, rulers or perfume bottles, by incorporating un-usable domestic utensils, or by showcasing his work as an assemblage, whereby each part is a fragment of a whole. Organization, or arrangement is therefore a fundamental aspect of the artist's work, not only in terms of exhibiting strategically, but also as an instrument for re-defining and reformulating his materials. 

Marcelo Silveira lives and works in Recife, Brazil. Recent solo exhibitions include: Hotel Solidão, at Nara Roesler (2022), in New York, Brazil; Compacto com pacto, at Sesc Triunfo (2019), in Triunfo, Brazil; Compacto mundo das coisas, at Galeria Nara Roesler (2019), in São Paulo, Brazil; Com texto, obras por Marcelo Silveira, at Museu de Arte Contemporânea de Sorocaba (MACS) (2018), in Sorocaba, Brazil; Censor, at Museu da Imagem e do Som (MIS) (2016), in São Paulo, Brazil; and 1 Dedo de Prosa, at Museu de Arte Moderna Aloísio Magalhães (MAMAM) (2016), in Recife, Brazil. He has also participated in the 5^th and  10^th Mercosur Biennial, Brazil (2005 and 2015); the 4^th Biennial of Valencia, Spain (2007);  35th Panorama da Arte Brasileira, Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo (MAM-SP), São Paulo, Brazil (2017); and in the 29th São Paulo Biennial, Brazil (2010). Recent group exhibitions include: Língua solta, no Museu da Língua Portuguesa (2021), em São Paulo, Brasil; Triangular: Arte deste século, at Casa Niemeyer (2019), in Brasília, Brazil; Apropriações, variações e neopalimpsestos, at Fundação Vera Chaves Barcellos (FVCB) (2018), in Viamão, Brazil; Contraponto – Coleção Sérgio Carvalho, at Museu Nacional da República (2017), in Brasília, Brazil; Modos de ver o Brasil: Itaú Cultural 30 anos, at Oca (2017), in São Paulo, Brazil. His works are part of important institutional collections such as: Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio de Janeiro (MAM Rio), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Museu de Arte Contemporânea da Universidade de São Paulo (MAC USP), São Paulo, Brazil; Museu de Arte Moderna Aloisio Magalhães (MAMAM), Recife, Brazil; Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.