Zezao
* born 1972 in São Paulo, Brazil
* graffiti
Important for classic graffiti, as for real-estate agents, is usually just one thing: “location, location, location!” While the large majority of graffiti writers are constantly seeking to place their symbols or images in the most prominent and sensational places possible in public space, Brazilian graffiti artist Zezão’s work reflects precisely the opposite. São Paulo’s underground canalization system and any well-concealed sites throughout the world have become canvases for works by the artist, who first entered the scene in 1995 – inspired by life on the streets, but also by the pixação lettering style with an authentic and somber appearance. And so it is that Zezão dedicates his talent to localities that one might call the foundations, the innards, the bowels of a metropolis – or their very own Hades.
Due to an implied critique of the dark side of life in otherwise pulsating, colorful metropolises, of environmental pollution, but also of the social injustices to which Brazil’s lower class is subjected, one might well characterize Zezão as a political activist who subversively operates in public space.
Denotive of Zezão’s style are the perpetually recurrent, light-blue calligraphic characters with their dark contouring which melt into the background like organic forms, while simultaneously immersing viewers in an almost surreal explosion of color – a color explosion that injects a measure of hope and individuality into their gloomy, forlorn surroundings.
