We are pleased to share and invite you to Joana Vasconcelos’ new exhibition: Fascinação, hosted by the Portuguese Embassy in Brazil.
Known for her monumental sculptures and immersive installations—where she decontextualizes and subverts everyday objects while offering a critical, humorous, and ironic view of contemporary society—Joana Vasconcelos is the youngest artist and the first woman to hold a solo exhibition at the Palace of Versailles, attracting 1.6 million visitors. The show was the most attended in 50 years and is regarded as a historic milestone in France. Her exhibition at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao was also among the museum’s most visited, firmly establishing her reputation as a major talent in contemporary art. Joana Vasconcelos: Fascinação takes its title from the song immortalized by the great Elis Regina and alludes to the fascinating world of the artist’s works. It also highlights the cultural and artistic ties between Portugal and Brazil.
Installed in the gardens of the Portuguese Embassy in Brazil, Pavillon de Vin stands as an authentic “sculpture-caramanchão,” where industrial elements and nature merge in perfect symbiosis. The iron grates that shape the wine jug reveal characteristic patterns reminiscent of railings and balcony guards. Forged iron—a material that is both functionally architectural and decorative—assumes a structural significance in the creation of the object, whose domesticity is subverted by the exaggeration of its scale. Deeply rooted in Portuguese society, wine plays an important role in various social, economic, and religious contexts, transcending borders—especially in Brasília, where local wine production is on the rise. Yet, Vasconcelos reappropriates the object, subverting its familiarity and challenging the viewer to enter a world that is simultaneously strange and familiar.
Inside the Embassy’s gallery, visitors will encounter a collection of 15 books by the artist, published by the Luso-Brazilian publisher Urucum and titled Os Cadernos da Minha Vida. These volumes reveal the formative period of Joana Vasconcelos through drawings, texts, and collages created between 1989 and 1997. Throughout her career, she recorded ideas and studies in various notebooks that document her creative process. In celebration of her 50th anniversary, each notebook was transformed into a large-format book accompanied by an original artwork—a unique azulejo panel for each volume.
During the exhibition season, a series of public discussions titled “Ciclo de Conversas” will be held to deepen the exploration of the themes present in the works. The first meeting, on the 20th, will feature Joana Vasconcelos herself discussing her work, international context, tradition, and contemporaneity. The following day, Brazilian publisher Lucia Bertazzo, based in Lisbon, will speak on “Art in the Form of a Book.
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Fascinaçāo
February 20 – August 15, 2025
Avenida das Nações, Lote 02, in Brasília, Brazil
