From street art to prestigious gallery exhibitions, the Brazilian brothers known as Os Gemeos (The Twins) have proven that everything is possible. They began spray-painting graffiti in 1987 on the streets of Sao Paulo with bright and powerful imagery and a style that evolved around traditional hip-hop Brazilian culture. Family, social and political realities in Sao Paulo and Brazilian folklore are some of the recurring themes.
Octavio and Gustavo Pandolfo are brothers and they always work together. They share the same dreams and artistic vision. As teenagers, they began using car paint, latex, and spray nozzles to create graffiti art. They caught the essence of the city and became known for their signature “yellow skinned” characters. They had their first solo exhibition in the US in 2003 at The Luggage Store in San Francisco. In 2008, Os Gemeos’ participated at Tate Modern London’s first major exhibition with six large-scale murals. Their work forms part of numerous public collections, including Tokyo’s Museum of Contemporary Art.
The red color of the painting below at Opera Gallery in Miami caught my attention but it was the playfulness of the lines that mostly interested me. The painting asked me to feel first, not to try to understand. The figures apparently have no connection to each other but placed together, they reveal a magical and surreal world where anything is possible.
