SP-Arte/Foto Brazil returns for its 10th edition

Image of a tree in aqua tones, with deep pink ground

Now in its 10th edition, SP-Arte/Foto celebrates the best of Brazilian photography. Pictured: Untitled, by Guilherme Ghisoni. Copyright Room 8

(Image credit: Guilherme Ghisoni)

By Elly Parsons

last updated 24 August 2022

Hosted in the art-laden halls of São Paulo's JK Iguatemi shopping mall, SP-Arte/Foto Brazil – the offshoot of SP-Arte – presents its 10th edition, where local focus has proven to be a winning strategy.

Founded in 2007, SP-Arte/Foto quickly established itself as the main photography fair in Brazil with an innovative programme embracing the country's sizable photographic market and community. For 2016, as every year, the cream of the country's art crop are participating.

The walls have been lined with an exciting scattering of new exhibitors (including Biographica and Luciana Caravello), as well as returning favourites (Casa Triângulo, Fass, Gávea, Luciana Brito, Millan and Vermelho) – creating a who's who of influential names in contemporary photography. Fair director Fernanda Feitosa explains, 'SP-Arte/Foto presents fundamental names in art history and Brazilian photography to a new generation and to the world.'

As well as showcasing seminal talent, the fair is keen to support new technologies and methods in photography. This year, Folio and Schoeler arrive with decadent photo books, making SP-Arte/Foto the first fair of its kind to include this format.

Whether pioneering new works, or dusting off old greats, the fair keeps things refreshingly local, with the emphasis firmly on Brazilian artists. Home-grown highlights include Massimo Vitali's uplifting summertime sandscapes from Baró Galeria, and contrastingly, Christian Cravo's haunting, choreographed close-ups of Brazilian backlands at Dan Galeria. It is this 'quality in diversity' that makes the fair such a success, Feitosa reasons.

All this pioneering work seems to be paying off, and is reflected in the growing list of acquisitions from MoMA. SP-Arte, Feitosa explains, has found its 'ideal format'. As the fair welcomes its 80,000th visitor this year, we're inclined to agree.

One empty picture frame with the bottom half removed, next to a second picture frame with an image of a woman in the bottom half — Founded in 2007, SP-Arte/Foto quickly established itself as the main photography fair in Brazil, with an innovative programme embracing the country's sizable photographic market and community. Pictured: *A peso de ouro,* by Ivan Grilo, 2016. *Courtesy Casa Triângulo*

Black and white image of two headless people standing on one leg on the same skateboard — For 2016, as every year, the cream of the country's art crop are participating. Pictured: *Ratsrapus,* by Fabiano Rodrigues, 2016. *Copyright Andrea Rehder Arte Contemporânea*

Black and white image of a storm with horizontal lightning — Returning favourites include Casa Triângulo, Fass, Gávea, Luciana Brito, Millan and Vermelho. Pictured: *Strike #5,* Ding Musa, 2016. *Courtesy Galeria Raquel Arnaud*

Image made up of sixteen identical photos of a plane on a purple background, each with a different focal point — Also included is an exciting scattering of new exhibitors (including Biographica and Luciana Caravello). Pictured: *Untitled,* by Penna Prearo. *Copyright Editora e Livraria Madalena*

People on a beach — *Untitled,* by Massimo Vitali. *Copyright* *Baro Galeria*

Left: brown curtain hanging in a doorway in the backlands. Right: a mattress jammed into a doorway acting as a bridge across unstable ground — Highlights include Christian Cravo's haunting, choreographed close-ups of Brazilian backlands at Dan Galeria. Pictured: *Untitled,* and *Untitled*, both by Christian Cravo. *Copyright Dan Galeria*

A sequence of pictures of a boy brushing his teeth and gradually becoming covered in toothpaste — *Homenagem a George Segal,* by Lenora de Barros, 1990/2013. *Copyright Galeria Millan / divulgação*

Left: a man in a striped t-shirt and a hat, holding a gun. Right: a man wearing a towel around his waist, standing beside a rocking chair — SP-Arte, director Fernanda Feitosa explains, has found its 'ideal format'. Pictured left: *Picasso dans son atelier de Mougins,* by André Villers, c.1955. Right: *Picasso avec le revolver et le chapeau*, by André Villers, 1959. *Copyright Fólio Livraria*

INFORMATION

For more information, visit the SP-Arte website (opens in new tab)

TOPICS

Brazil

Elly Parsons is the Digital Editor of Wallpaper*, where she oversees Wallpaper.com and its social platforms. She has been with the brand since 2015 in various roles, spending time as digital writer – specialising in art, technology and contemporary culture – and as deputy digital editor. She was shortlisted for a PPA Award in 2017, has written extensively for many publications, and has contributed to three books. She is a guest lecturer in digital journalism at Goldsmiths University, London, where she also holds a masters degree in creative writing. Now, her main areas of expertise include content strategy, audience engagement, and social media.