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Cecilia Brunson Projects is pleased to present a group exhibition featuring Matheus Chiaratti (b. 1988), Feliciano Centurión (1962 – 1996) and José Leonilson (1957 – 1993), produced in collaboration with Gisela Projects.New works by Chiaratti construct a dialogue with Centurión and Leonilson, two artists who gave soft and poetic form to queer identity in Latin America in the 1980s-90s. An imaginary friendship between these artists from two different generations, who never crossed paths, is articulated by Chiaratti through letter writing, visual references and a shared artistic sensibility centred around love, passion and intimacy.
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Centurión and Leonilson shared remarkably symmetrical stories, unfolding in post-dictatorship Argentina and Brazil, respectively, when artistic discourse turned from the political to the internal. Both cultivated a space between the disciplines of painting and textile, producing gentle work, electrified in its political defiance of gender conventions and reframing of tradition to express queer identities. Both contracted HIV, a subject confronted in their late works with raw honesty, and died in their 30s. Their use of language – lines of poetry, internal monologues, dedications stitched into their work – made for radically clear and tender vocalisations of queer love, and make it feel possible to know these artists who left behind such finite bodies of work.
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A painted textile by Leonilson reflects the artist’s use of encoded symbolism to both convey and protect intimate thoughts. A pair of fish at once evoke Catholic fraternity, Pisces and its mythological associations with Aphrodite and Eros, and the queer motif of the double, in an image both guarded and meaningful.
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Works by Brazilian artist Matheus Chiaratti function as an emotional cartography – a way of sorting out the world from a restless and deeply curious perspective. Throughout Chiaratti’s practice, his maternal grandmother’s gardens are restored as a territory of desire, memory and theatricality. Nature emerges as a scenery of abundance, a romantic monument to the most primal feelings.Across textile, ceramics, painting and photographic collage, the investigation of words and their poetic capacity is a central theme in Chiaratti’s production. Through evocative images of nature, art historical reference and a mapping of images and thoughts, he arranges his universe as a visual diary, a sketchbook: a world that is mythical and banal, intimate and sacred.
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Centurión frequently worked with the synthetic blankets used for household packing and for shelter by the homeless, cutting and reframing these materials with satin trims. Adorning the works with his painting, he draws upon the poetic values of textiles – sewing as a means of repair, blankets as objects of comfort – extracting deep meaning from objects so commonplace.The exhibition also highlights Centurión’s early painting practice, including works not exhibited since early in his career, with subject matter ranging from Donna Summer to the tropical wilderness of his native Paraguay. Painted soon after the artist left his mother and grandmother’s home for the comparatively cold and urban Buenos Aires, in their untamed brushstrokes and disco palette, they are expressions of freedom and of yearning.
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Chiaratti’s composite images take notes from Centurión and Leonilson, and other queer guides – Leonilson’s fountains, Centurión’s flowers, Frida Kahlo’s intense and violent love for Diego Rivera branded on her mind and her skin, and Jean Genet’s explicit writings. Amongst his own deeply personal expression is the inheritance of a culture created before him.
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![Matheus Chiaratti Anoitece nas escadas do seu prédio (Abetarda) [Night falls on the stairs of your building (Abetarda series)], 2024 Glazed ceramic 20 x 15 x 15 cm 7 7/8 x 5 7/8 x 5 7/8 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/ws-cbprojects/usr/images/feature_panels/images_and_objects/905/anoitece-nas-escadas-do-seu-pre-dio-abetarda-night-falls-on-the-stairs-of-your-building-abetarda-series-.ph.estu-dio-em-obra_4.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Filho primitivo do sol (Abetarda) [Primitive state as child of the sun (Abetarda series)], 2022 Glazed ceramic 7 x 5 x 5 cm 2 3/4 x 2 x 2 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/4b891d2b366ec1e63f8343c8708ec495j.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti, Bellezza che cade [Beauty that Falls], 2022](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_2400,h_2400,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/9d22edcb123043517a6c120903cc9ad6j.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti, Elogio: corpalto pra lua (Cadouço) [Praise: body high on the moon (Cadouço series)], 2025](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_2400,h_2400,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/fa2a3690c9dd54993857624f43bfad17j.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Retrato de Federico no breu [Portrait of Federico in the darkness], 2014 Oil on canvas 40 x 30 cm 15 3/4 x 11 3/4 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/f8e5e320ac99a787fdadd96d7539596e.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Tremor na ponta da faca (Abetarda) [Shiver at the knife’s edge (Abetarda series)], 2024 Glazed ceramic 18 x 20 x 2.5 cm 7 1/8 x 7 7/8 x 1 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/b2237fd3c7d88a81b8148883eeb5f354.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti As chagas, as chagas, as chagas (diamante) [The wounds, the wounds, the wounds (diamond-lover series)], 2025 Oil on canvas and acrylic on wood 35 x 30 cm 13 3/4 x 11 3/4 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/5085aa8db55d71fb43a717869126f448j.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Angoscia (diamante) [Angoscia (diamond-lover series)], 2025 Oil on canvas and acrylic on wood 35 x 40 cm 13 3/4 x 15 3/4 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/69c37399bde391044b71c7510ec59c08j.jpg)
![Feliciano Centurión, Ausencia [Absence] (Lilac flower in plant), 1990s](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_2400,h_2400,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/0a2911d7a26b2c89c4ed3e961f7e4355j.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Vaso de flor no sítio [Flower vase at the countryhouse], 2014-18 Oil on canvas 40 x 40 cm 15 3/4 x 15 3/4 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/e8c5f761102d38eeeecfa14ac95da9e6j.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Represa (Os Jardins de Pau Lavrado) [Artificial lake (The Pau Lavrado Gardens series)], 2024 Oil on linen 15 x 10 cm 5 7/8 x 4 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/2a87beebc899274dab814863928b1c96.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Quaresmeira (Os Jardins de Pau Lavrado) [Princess flower (The Pau Lavrado Gardens series)], 2024 Oil on linen 23 x 17 cm 9 x 6 3/4 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/5c8390550a5a2f9803e1a3ecd202f56b.jpg)
![Feliciano Centurión Cañaveral [Reedbed], c. 1988 Acrylic on linen 118 x 86.5 cm 46 1/2 x 34 1/8 in Signed bottom right](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/ea5d5970d20c04ef1655177bffc7285bj.jpg)
![Feliciano Centurión Ausencia [Absence] (Lilac flower in plant), 1990s Acrylic on fabric 30 x 20 cm 11 3/4 x 7 7/8 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/0a2911d7a26b2c89c4ed3e961f7e4355j.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Noites de Maio (Abetarda) [Nights of May (Abetarda series)], 2023 Glazed ceramic 20 x 18 x 15 cm 7 7/8 x 7 1/8 x 5 7/8 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/3365c5f5c09c52f581a1acdf07cbe451j.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Anoitece nas escadas do seu prédio (Abetarda) [Night falls on the stairs of your building (Abetarda series)], 2024 Glazed ceramic 20 x 15 x 15 cm 7 7/8 x 5 7/8 x 5 7/8 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/2c8256c807e57ed2e39f8cf101fd70be.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Bellezza che cade [Beauty that Falls], 2022 Acrylic on artist's linen shirt 80 x 68 cm (variable) 31 1/2 x 26 3/4 in (variable)](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/9d22edcb123043517a6c120903cc9ad6j.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Centurión: el amor (Cadouço) [Centurión: the love (Cadouço series)], 2025 Acrylic on canvas 120 x 150 cm 47 1/4 x 59 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/8dd6893cfb27a72b3f0334fc0ab165c0j.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Elogio: corpalto pra lua (Cadouço) [Praise: body high on the moon (Cadouço series)], 2025 Acrylic on canvas 30 x 40 cm 11 3/4 x 15 3/4 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/fa2a3690c9dd54993857624f43bfad17j.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Araçatuba a Londres (Cadouço) [From Araçatuba to London (Cadouço series)], 2025 Acrylic on linen 10 x 12 cm 4 x 4 3/4 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/781da0ac88ce0127ce53613675769408j.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Saint-me-Sebastião (Cadouço) [Saint-me-Sebastian (Cadouço series)], 2025 Acrylic on linen 10 x 12 cm 4 x 4 3/4 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/21d0f1025b342d7628b6585431965197j.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Fogo para canavial (Os Jardins de Pau Lavrado) [Fire in the sugarcane field (The Pau Lavrado Gardens series)], 2024 Oil on linen 16 x 21.5 cm 6 1/4 x 8 1/2 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/380436fb07b25a3f81e406d354fe7305.jpg)
![Matheus Chiaratti Marteli (Os Jardins de Pau Lavrado) [Marteli neighbourhood (The Pau Lavrado Gardens series)], 2024 Oil on linen 30 x 25 cm 11 3/4 x 9 7/8 in](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/2edf6b5ca0bfd10e9fdf93130e897960.jpg)
