The Sharjah Art Foundation (SAF) is hosting The Search for an Open Enigma, the first solo exhibition in the region by acclaimed Brazilian artist Antonio Dias (1944–2018). The show celebrates the diversity and provocative nature of Dias’ work, featuring pieces that trace his artistic evolution from the 1960s through the late 1990s. Curated by Hoor Al Qasimi (Director of SAF) with Reem Sawan (Curatorial Assistant at SAF), the exhibition will end on 8 December 2024.
The exhibition’s title draws inspiration from Brazilian artist and sculptor Hélio Oiticica’s 1969 analysis of Dias’ iconography, emphasising Dias’ daring visuals, enigmatic figures, and vivid colour palette. On view are the artist’s early mixed-media works from the 1960s, characterised by graphic, cartoon-like imagery, that critique Brazil’s military dictatorship. He used elements of Brazilian pop culture to comment on violence and censorship, often incorporating depictions of body parts to reflect political concerns.
After relocating to Paris in 1966, Dias lived and worked in Europe, including Milan and Cologne. Influenced by the Italian Arte Povera movement, he turned to conceptual art and moved away from traditional imagery. His works from the late 1960s to the mid-1970s include monochromatic, text-based paintings and geometric installations critiquing art and societal norms. During this period, Dias also ventured into video art, producing Super 8 films such as The Illustration of Art I (1971), where two bandages crossed the skin of a model, blending geometry, abstraction, and body art.
Between 1977 and 1978, Dias spent several months in Nepal mastering the traditional craft of papermaking. This experience introduced a new medium to his practice, as he combined materials like soot, clay, and iron oxide to create textured works with soft, muted tones, signalling another transformation in his style.
In the 1980s, Dias shifted to abstract paintings, incorporating metallic pigments, bold colours, and dynamic forms. He arranged canvases and objects into sculptural compositions and continued experimenting with mixed-media installations imbued with sharp wit until 2018.
About the artist
Antonio Dias was born in Campina Grande, Paraíba, Brazil, and moved to Rio de Janeiro with his family in 1957, where he began working as a draughtsman and graphic designer. In the early 1960s, he began visiting the studio of famous modernist printmaker Oswaldo Goeldi at the Escola Nacional de Belas Artes (Rio de Janeiro).
Dias has exhibited widely in solo and group exhibitions, such as Antonio Dias: Derrotas e vitórias (solo) (Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil, 2021); Pop América, 1965–1975 (Mary & Leigh Block Museum at Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA, 2019); the 34th and 33rd Bienal de São Paulo (Brazil, 2021 and 2018); Una collezione (solo) (Fondazione Marconi, Milan, Italy, 2017); and Mario Pedrosa – On the Affective Nature of Form (Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid, Spain, 2017).
Dias’ art pieces are part of esteemed public collections, including Daros Latinamerica Collection (Zurich, Switzerland), Museum Ludwig (Cologne, Germany), Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires (MALBA) (Buenos Aires, Argentina), and Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) (New York, USA), to name a few.
To get more information about The Search for an Open Enigma, please go to the official web page of the exhibition.
In addition, you might be interested in visiting Fragility and Resilience, Ayesha Sultana’s solo show at Ishara Art Foundation, and Ka Awatea, A New Dawn by Emily Karaka.
