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For more than a decade, Sergio Allevato has developed a consistent body of work that mixes different media such as painting, sculpture, installation, and more. At the core of his production, the artist investigates the intricate historical relations between Brazil and the collective imaginary of the world.

 

Interested in how Brazil (or braZil, with the lowercase b and the uppercase Z, title of an important series of works of the artist) takes part in a complex web of geopolitical affairs that encompasses matters regarding imperialism, colonization, and cultural dependence. Therefore, the artist’s pieces have a deep sense of identity and belonging, affirming both the bright and colorful side of Brazil’s highly disseminated idea of an idyllic tropical paradise with the violence that historical processes have input in the country’s history itself.

 

Through a very precise approach to a flamboyant visuality, Allevato paints and sculpts Disney characters, birds, flowers, and other vastly recognizable figures that, at their surface, seem to entertain and enchant our eyes. On a deeper level, all of them share complex feelings of passiveness/aggressiveness: though colorful and sensual, his characters and landscapes remind us, always, of the many layers beneath their quirky smiles and expressions.

 

Between freedom and imprisonment, exuberance and rage, clichés, and hard truths, Allevato’s works frequently leave us in a state of bewilderment – we are astonished by their beauty, but we are also taken aback by their accurate and acid political dimension.

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Victor Gorgulho

(Independent curator, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)