Photography as matter: Rogério Medeiros exhibits in São Paulo

Thirty works spanning two decades: “Each Hour Casts Its Shadow” shows how Rogério Medeiros reinvents photography as a plastic language.

Through April 25, Galeria Estúdio Reverso in São Paulo presents “Each Hour Casts Its Shadow” (Cada hora faz sua sombra), a solo exhibition by visual artist Rogério Medeiros, curated by Catalina Bergues. Featuring around thirty works produced between 2003 and the present, the show brings together series from different points in the artist’s career, foregrounding a sustained investigation into light, time, and photographic language.

Photography beyond documentation

The exhibition is built on a clear premise: photography as plastic material, not mere capture of reality. Medeiros pushes artistic languages to their limits, transforming images into autonomous visual constructions. “I have always been a photographer,” the artist says — though it was only in 2003 that he began his authorial practice, with nature as his primary visual and aesthetic source.

Over time, his references shifted from classical photographers and painters to the postwar Abstract Expressionists, especially those of the New York School. This shift shaped the development of an abstract language applied to photography, a defining trait of his work.

Collage, gesture, and deconstruction

After publishing the book Ritmo e Gesto (Rhythm and Gesture, 2012), Medeiros began incorporating manual gesture into his creative process, developing photographic collages that freely recombine captured landscapes. The results are unique, imaginary images built from real records — an approach that questions the very sign of photography.

This investigation into light led him to photograph the sky and its rich color palette. “The search for new elements to work into the collages led me to photograph the sky. I became interested in visual simplification — after all, I was dealing with the manifestation and record of pure, singular light, shaped by the hour, latitude, and weather conditions. Relating this to time and its implications for each individual was a natural sequence. From there came reflections on how time and lived experience influence the psyche and the emotions,” Medeiros explains.

From dawn to night: the spatial arrangement

The exhibition is organized chromatically, following the passage of time through the day. It begins in white, moves through light blue, advances into oranges and violets, and arrives at deep blue and black. The first room greets visitors with a white work — a synthesis of Medeiros’s current production.

Curator Catalina Bergues describes the concept: “Looking at Medeiros’s work over the past 30 years, you can see how aspects of what he does now were already present back then — and that is exactly what this exhibition does: it blends and rearranges the series, creating connections through recurring elements and colors. Rogério began by using photography to frame the outside. Now, in his current series, he uses the exterior image to look inward.”

Materials and technique

In building his poetics, Medeiros works with cotton, rice, and pearlescent papers for prints with mineral pigments. Cards, boards, glue, acid-free adhesive tapes, and paper pulp are used to shape surfaces. Materiality is a fundamental part of the work.

A well-established career

Rogério Medeiros holds works in major collections, including the Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo, the Museu de Arte de São Paulo (Pirelli Collection), the Museu de Arte do Rio Grande do Sul, the MAC-RS, and the Itamaraty at the Brazilian Consulate General in Paris. Past solo exhibitions include the Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo (2003) and the Museu de Arte do Rio Grande do Sul (2006 and 2016).

Galeria Estúdio Reverso was founded in 2025 by advertising professional Robson Ciaramicoli, with a focus on expanded photography and its intersections with other artistic practices.

Event Info

• Exhibition: “Each Hour Casts Its Shadow” — solo show by Rogério Medeiros
• Curator: Catalina Bergues
• Dates: through April 25, 2026
• Venue: Galeria Estúdio Reverso — Rua Domingos Fernandes, 88, Vila Nova Conceição, São Paulo, Brazil
• Hours: Wednesday to Saturday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Monday, Tuesday, and Sunday by prior appointment via Instagram @galeriaestudioreverso
• Admission: free