Five Brazilian Artists to Explore in Tate Modern’s Collection
Tate Modern turns 25 in May. To celebrate the anniversary of one of UK’s largest museums of modern and contemporary art, we bring a selection of five works by Brazilian artists currently on display at Tate’s permanent collection exhibition. It is free to visit the permanent display, and Tate curators are constantly changing it to reflect on the latest debates and themes surrounding the world’s most famous modern and contemporary artworks. This list includes works on display on the second and fourth floors of Tate’s Natalie Bell Building.
1. Hélio Oiticica, B17 Glass Bólide 05 ‘Homage to Mondrian’, 1965
Hélio Oiticica’s “B17 Glass Bólide 05 ‘Homage to Mondrian”, acquired by Tate in 2007, offers a perspective on the artist’s pioneering practice in the 1960s, when he started to produce a series of sculptures and installations that engaged in a sensual, interactive exploration of the objects, one of neoconcretism’s main driving forces. Right next to this work, you can see a printed version of Ferreira Gullar’s Neoconcrete Manifesto, published in 1959, and a poster from a 1965 exhibition featuring works by Lygia Clark at the London gallery Signals in 1965. Both documents hold immense value in the context of Brazilian art in the 1960s.
Location: Natalie Bell Building, Level 2, Artist and Society, A View from São Paulo: Abstraction and Society
2. Lygia Pape, Weaving, 1957
Together with Hélio Oiticica and Lygia Clark, artist Lygia Pape contributed to the foundation of the neoconcrete movement in Brazil. Her work presents a pioneering approach to abstraction and form. Pape was initially interested in the formal geometric abstraction prevalent in the Brazilian concrete art circles but ultimately reinterpreted this tradition by expanding and pushing the geometric boundaries of her work. This evolution can be seen in “Weaving”, a textile piece created in the late 1950s, which contemplates on the use of materials and organic processes.
Location: Natalie Bell Building, Level 2, Artist and Society, A View from São Paulo: Abstraction and Society
3. Rubem Valentim, Emblem 70 No. 2, 1970
In the spirit of the Royal Academy’s major exhibition of Brazilian modernism, on view between January and April 2025, this work by artist Rubem Valentim presents his vast visual and aesthetic universe, informed by Afro-Brazilian cultures and spiritual traditions. The piece is part of his “Emblem” series, in which Valentim depicts his religious background through the symbolic use of colours and geometric shapes.
Location: Natalie Bell Building, Level 2, Artist and Society, A View from São Paulo: Abstraction and Society
4. Nelson Leirner, Homage to Fontana II, 1967
Nelson Leirner was one of the most influential contemporary Brazilian artists. His work often comments on the dynamics of the art system, consumerism, capitalism, and pop culture. In “Homage to Fontana II”, Leirner references Lucio Fontana’s iconic slashes on canvas by incorporating multiple zippers into a textile piece. These zippers can be opened and closed, creating ever-changing layers and emphasising the mutable nature of the work. Through this gesture, Leirner both honours and reinterprets Fontana’s legacy.
Location: Natalie Bell Building, Level 2, Artist and Society, A View from São Paulo: Abstraction and Society
5. Cildo Meireles, Babel, 2001
“Babel” is one of the most renowned installations by contemporary artist Cildo Meireles. The work, composed of numerous second-hand analogue radios, emits a soundscape that is both disorienting and captivating. This large-scale sculpture occupies an entire gallery space, inviting visitors to step inside and experience the cacophony it produces. Inspired by the biblical story of the Tower of Babel, Meireles sought to recreate a world where the diversity of languages leads to miscommunication.
Location: Natalie Bell Building, Level 4, Media Networks
Carol Fucci for London Art Walk
April 2025