Véio [Cícero Alves dos Santos]

1948, Nossa Senhora da Glória | SE - Brazil 

Cícero Alves dos Santos, known as Véio, is an iconic figure in Brazilian folk art and a significant contemporary artist. A self-taught master of wood sculpture, his work transcends the boundaries between folk and contemporary art, merging the memory of traditions with vibrant and modern expressiveness.

His creative process is visceral and intuitive, marked by a sensitive dialogue with his materials. Véio uses logs, roots, and pieces of wood found in nature, respecting their natural forms and textures. He believes that the wood already holds the figures he seeks to reveal, and with simple tools like a pocketknife, he transforms these materials into enigmatic sculptures. His works navigate between the figurative and the abstract, creating fantastic, anthropomorphic, and hybrid beings that evoke both collective memories and contemporary narratives.

Véio’s artistic research connects oral histories, traditions, and the imagination of Brazil’s Northeast with universal themes. His sculptures, often painted in vibrant, intense colors, preserve the cultural memory of the sertão while exploring symbolism and layers of interpretation. These pieces are imbued with poetry and critique, questioning the relationships between humanity and the natural world, between past and present.

Recognized nationally and internationally, Véio occupies a unique position in the art world. His works are part of major public collections in Brazil and abroad, establishing him as an essential voice in understanding the richness of folk culture and its profound conne

Solo Exhibition:

2021 Veio, Galeria de Arte Cícero Alves dos Santos no Sesc Santos, Santos, SP, Brazil

2018 Véio - the imagination of wood, Itaú Cultural, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2017 Suddenly into the World, Galeria Estação, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2017 Suddenly into the World, Gustavo Rebello Art, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

2016 Véio, SEEDS Gallery, London, UK

2015 Ramifications, SESC Santo Amaro, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2015 Becoming Marni, parallel to the 56º Biennale of Veneza, Abadia of São Gregório, Venice, Italy

2014 Cicero Alves dos Santos - Véios | Sculptures Galeria Estacao, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2010 Véio | Sculptures, MAP – Museum of Popular Art, Diadema, SP, Brazil

2006 Chipped Nation: Véio’s art and metaphor, National Centre of Folklore and Popular Culture, Edison Carneiro Museum, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

2003 The things we got, Cultural Area of Legislative Assembly, Aracajú, SE, Brazil

1999 The art and the knowledge, Cultural Area of Legislative Assembly, Aracajú, SE, Brazil

1991 Northeast, Cultural Centre Tancredo Neves, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil

1986 Véio and Sergipe, Natal Convention Centre, Natal, RN, Brazil

Collective Exhibitions:

2024 Meramorphoses e Distances, Galeria Estação, São Paulo – SP, Brazil

2023 – 2024 Brasil Futuro: as formas da democracia, MAR - Museu de Arte do Rio, Rio de Janeiro - RJ, Brazil

2023 Brasil Futuro: as formas da democracia, Solar Ferrão, Salvador – BA, Brazil

2023 Brasil Futuro: as formas da democracia, Espaço Cultural Casa das Onze Janelas, Belém – PA, Brazil

2023 Brasil Futuro: as formas da democracia, MuN - Museu Nacional da República, Brasília - DF, Brazil

2023 REVERSOS & TRANSVERSOS: artistas fora do eixo (e amigos) nas bienais, Galeria Estação, São Paulo – SP, Brazil

2021 POCORART World Exhibition, Chance and Necessity and..., Tokyo, Japan

2021 They Were Already Here, Galeria Base, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2021 Citizens – Created by Guillermo Kuitca, Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Milan, Italy

2021 1981/2021: Contemporary Brazilian Art in the Andrea and José Olympio Pereira Collection, Banco do Brasil Cultural Center (CCBB), Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

2020 Highlight, Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio MAM, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

2019 Art Naif: No Museum Less, Escola de Artes Visuais do Parque Lage, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

2019 Animal, Galeria Marcelo Guarnieri, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2019 Quimera, Galeria do Lago / Museu da República, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

2017 Ways to See Brazil: Itaú Cultural 30 Years, Oca, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2017 Bestiary, Centro Cultura São Paulo (CCSP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2016 The Many and the One: Brazilian Contemporary Art, Tomie Ohtake Institute, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2016 Between looks: poetics of the Brazilian soul, Museu Afro Brasil, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2015 A particular collection - Contemporary art at Pinacoteca collection, Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2015 10th Mercosul Biennial, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil

2014 Frestas Art Trienal Sesc Sorocaba, Sorocaba, SP, Brazil

2014 Armadillo: Soccer, Adversity and the Culture of the Caatinga, Museu de Arte do Rio – Mar,Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

2014 Almost a figure, almost a shape, Estação Art Gallery, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2014 Vivid Memories Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris, França

2013 Crossed worlds: Art and Popular Imaginery, MAM, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

2012 Stories of Seeing, Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain, Paris, France

2012 Stubbornness of Imagination - Ten Brazilian Artists, Paco Imperial, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

2012 Stubbornness of Imagination - Ten Brazilian Artist, Tomie Ohtake, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2010 Brazilian Art beyond the system, Estação Arte Gallery, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2009 Imaginary Voices, National Centre of Folklore and Popular Culture - Edison Carneiro Museum, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

2006/2007 Live Culture, Museu Afro Brasil, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2001 All Together, Gallery Ox Foot, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

Public Collections: 

Fondation Cartier pour lart contemporain, Paris, France

Pavilion of Brazilian Cultures, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

MAR - Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

MAM - Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

AfroBrasil Museum, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

Acervo Sesc de Arte, São Paulo, Brazil

Selected Publications:

2020 Realce, Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio MAM, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

2019 "Trees" Fondation Cartier pour l'art Comtemporain, EBS, Verona, Italy

2018 Arte Popular Brasileira: olhares contemporâneos], WMF Martins Fontes, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2018 VÉIO, Itaú Cultural, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2017 Catalog of the exhibition "VÉIO - Suddenly into the world", Lis Gráfica, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2015 Mensagem de uma nova América, Fundação Bienal de Artes Visuais do Mercosul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil

2014 Cícero Alves dos Santos [Veio], WMF Martins Fontes, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

2010 Catalog of the exhibition "Véio | Esculturas”, Lis Gráfica, São Paulo, SP, Brazil