{"id":633,"date":"2025-05-29T14:15:22","date_gmt":"2025-05-29T14:15:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trimfaucet.com\/?p=633"},"modified":"2025-05-30T12:32:46","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T12:32:46","slug":"in-surreal-portraits-rafael-silveira-tends-to-the-garden-of-consciousness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trimfaucet.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/29\/in-surreal-portraits-rafael-silveira-tends-to-the-garden-of-consciousness\/","title":{"rendered":"In Surreal Portraits, Rafael Silveira Tends to the Garden of Consciousness"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"In<\/p>\n

With scenic vistas for faces, blossoms for eyes, or nothing but coral above the shoulders, Rafael Silveira<\/a>\u2019s surreal portraits<\/a> summon aspects of human consciousness that span the spectrum of the wonderful and the weird. The Brazilian artist describes his work as “a profound dive into the human mind,” merging flowers, landscapes, and uncanny hybrid features into visages that channel humor with a slightly sinister undertone.<\/p>\n

Silveira’s forthcoming solo exhibition, Agricultura C\u00f3smica<\/em> at DCG Contemporary<\/a>, traverses “the fertile terrain of the subconscious,” the gallery says. “With a nod to pop surrealism and the uncanny, his work imagines the mind as a garden where thoughts are seeds and images (are) the wildflowers that sprout.”<\/p>\n

\"a
“PLEEESE” (2025), oil on canvas, 23.62 \u00d7 23.62 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Silveira works predominantly in oil, using panel or canvas as a surface and occasionally surrounding his works with ornate, hand-carved wooden frames. The sculptural details of the frames, like an anatomical heart in “Eyeconic Couple” or an all-seeing eye topping “A Croca\u0302ncia do Tempo” \u2014 “the crunchiness of time” in Portuguese \u2014 read like talismans.<\/p>\n

Many of Silveira’s compositions begin with a traditional head-and-shoulders portrait composition as a starting point, but instead of skin we see a distant horizon, like in “Magnetic,” or a figure’s head supplanted by a stalk of coral or a column of fire. Other pieces omit the human outline altogether in amusing arrangements of vivid flowers, which suggest wide eyes and addled expressions. While human forms shed their emotional autonomy as they converge with their surroundings, the flora in works like “OMG” and “PLEEESE” are a profusion of awe and desire.<\/p>\n

Agricultura C\u00f3smica<\/em> opens in London on June 12 and continues through July 10. The show runs concurrently alongside an exhibition titled Plural<\/em> by embroidery artist Flavia Itiber\u00ea<\/a>. See more on the artist’s website<\/a> and Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"a
“Eyeconic Couple” (2025), oil on panel and hand-carved frame, 15.75 \u00d7 35.43 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"a
“Inside Out” (2025), oil on canvas, 35.4 x 31.5 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"a
“A Croca\u0302ncia do Tempo” (2025), oil on panel and hand-carved frame, 35.4 x 31.5 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"a
“The Artifice of Eternity” (2025), oil on canvas, 23.62 \u00d7 31.5 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"a
“OMG” (2025), oil on canvas, 23.62 \u00d7 23.62 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"a
“Paixa\u0303o Ardente” (2025), oil on panel and hand-carved frame, 35.4 x 31.5 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"a
“The Roots of Reality” (2025), oil on canvas, 35.4 x 31.5 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member<\/a> today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article In Surreal Portraits, Rafael Silveira Tends to the Garden of Consciousness<\/a> appeared first on Colossal<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With scenic vistas for faces, blossoms for eyes, or nothing but coral above the shoulders, Rafael Silveira\u2019s surreal portraits summon aspects of human consciousness that span the spectrum of the wonderful and the weird. The Brazilian artist describes his work as “a profound dive into the human mind,” merging flowers,…<\/p>\n

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