Saphira Ventura Gallery and vozes do mundo Presents
Art Residency and Solo exhibition by EZO
On View: Oct 1-15, 2025
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION
“Upcycled Factory” is the first solo exhibition by artist EZO, recognized for transforming discarded materials into art and showcasing the everyday life of Rio’s suburbs.
“Upcycled Factory” is the first solo exhibition by artist EZO, recognized for transforming discarded materials into powerful social commentary and visual poetry, in New York. Curated by Alcinda Saphira and Mariana Bahia, at Galeria Saphira & Ventura, urban waste crosses the Atlantic and is reborn in the hands of contemporary visual artist EZO, a native of Nilópolis, a suburb of Rio de Janeiro.
“EZO’s work aligns perfectly with the gallery’s contemporary vision, addressing themes such as urban life, identity, and street culture. His aesthetic—which blends discarded objects with the everyday reality of Rio’s suburbs—offers a fresh and innovative perspective,” notes Alcinda Saphira, curator of Saphira & Ventura Gallery.
The choice to present Ezo’s work in New York reflects an appreciation for his talent, which emerges from specific cultural contexts, employs elegant geometry, and works with vibrant colors that possess universal resonance. This is an important moment to highlight the diversity of voices in contemporary art, especially those originating from the suburbs of Rio de Janeiro, which often remain marginalized by traditional art circles. Furthermore, the gallery seeks to strengthen cultural exchange between Brazil and New York, fostering a dialogue between different urban and cultural realities.
New York audiences, with their vast experience in diverse urban and cultural narratives, identify with Ezo’s work, recognizing universal elements of urbanity, resistance, and identity.
The aesthetics and stories conveyed by Ezo reflect experiences common to global cities—such as the search for expression, belonging, and social transformation—even though his specific references are from the Rio de Janeiro suburbs. Thus, his work serves as a bridge connecting diverse urban realities, fostering empathy and understanding.
The gallery identifies in EZO an authentic voice, with global relevance and the potential for dialogue between distinct urban communities. The current moment in the New York scene values peripheral perspectives, urban imagination, and social critique, making EZO’s exhibition particularly timely to expand the diversity of voices in the program.
The exhibition runs from October 1st to 15th, opening on the 2nd, from 6 pm to 8 pm. From September 19th to 30th, the artist’s immersive residency will take place at Saphira & Ventura. On the 9th, Ezo will meet with journalist and critic Peter Ortega, who will discuss the artist’s work, with the presence of other curators and artists, the public, and the press.
Curated by: Alcinda Saphira (NY) and Mariana Bahia (BR)
Produced by: Mariana Lemos
Supported by: Instituto Bienal Amazônia (IBA) and
New York International Contemporary Art Society
about the artist
Ezo rewrites what has been discarded. CDs, vinyl records, laser discs, and awnings reappear as surfaces of color and texture, revealing layers of urban memory. His practice of reuse transforms precariousness into power, critique into beauty, and political gesture into visual poetics. What the city abandons, the artist reconfigures as narrative and body, restoring the material a sense of permanence.
Here, the public is invited to see up close the scars of materials, fragments that become images, residues that become futures. An aesthetic of survival that insists on creating beauty.
Instagram: @ezo_art_
