Paulo Nimer Pjota

Brasil, 1988

            Paulo Nimer Pjota lives and works in São Paulo and his works deal with the mixtures and contradictions of contemporary life. A display of scenes that simultaneously convey chaos and calm. As a researcher dedicated to popular iconography, Pjota is interested in the ways in which images are produced, edited and disseminated in an era he defines as hyperconnected and ruled by the Internet. At the age of 17 he began his studies at the Centro Universitário de Belas Artes de São Paulo and his creations have always been permeated by the idea of collective work and common imaginary. His works are a cocktail of references that move away from the canons that indicate what should or can be mixed. Thus, in one of his works, Darth Vader's helmet meets a pair of African masks and a miniature Captain America to show that power is timeless.  

            His multi-layered collages are often on large surfaces. The mix not only encompasses the symbolic, but also the supports he uses. Thus, it is common to find in the same piece the combination of canvases with metal and wooden sheets, most of which were rescued from junkyards. The conjunction of diverse textures, images and materials generates a playful and provocative proposal in tune with the contemporary aesthetics enabled by digital technologies. Pjota is irreverent, and his attitude is present in works such as The History of Colonialism (2017), where he puts together a two-dimensional assemblage that combines several versions of smiley and sad faces, a sort of digital emojis, with four large pots external to the canvas. These combinations are a proposal to reflect on new social orders where the place of culture, high or low, and history, are in constant change and friction.