Artist’s encounters with plants on show
Lumière Contemporary Art Gallery will present Marcelo Daldoce’s first solo presentation at the Limassol venue this October, new artworks under the title Plants. On view from October 11 to November 11, the Brazilian-American artist’s work reflects his encounters with plants, both inside and outside his studio.
This makes up two distinct bodies of work in the exhibition – Observational and Tactile. “The Observational showcases perspectival academic watercolours and line drawings of live tropical houseplants,” explain organisers. “These delicate, foreign specimens are rooted in water, replicating life and adapting to indoor conditions. Daldoce captures their softness and the surrounding negative space, exploring the interplay between fragility and resilience. The process engages the retinal senses – seeing, internalising, and interpreting.
“The Tactile,” they add, “in contrast, features non-perspectival experimental works created from dead, native outdoor plants – often regarded as weeds that thrive in harsh environments. Collected from the streets, these plants are dried and flattened in a print press to produce monotypes. Each piece reflects the tenacity of these weeds as they emerge from crevices and conquer concrete spaces, illustrating a formal abstraction that speaks to their resilience. The process is metaphorically linked to primal sensory experiences, such as touching, smelling and feeling textures, and reflects the interactions between plants and beasts, such as bees and pollen.”
Daldoce is a Brazilian who migrated to the USA and a big part of his art is rooted in the sense of belonging and rooting in new environments. His work also explores themes of duality – softness and strength, life and death – inspired by the loss of his father and the birth of his daughter just two days later.
Following exhibitions in Brazil and New York City as well as his art being on the cover of magazines such as There and GQ, Daldoce is now travelling to our corner of the Mediterranean to bring his Plants to Limassol and meet Cyprus’ artistic community.
Plants
Solo exhibition by Marcelo Daldoce. October 11 – November 11. LUMIÈRE Contemporary Art Gallery, Limassol. Opening night: 7pm. Tel: 25-344141. www.lumiereartgallery.com