Hildebrando de Castro was Born in Olinda, Pernambuco, in 1957. Since the 70’s, he has been working on paintings, that became notorious by their astonishing precision. His first solo exhibition took place at Rio de Janeiro’s Museu Nacional de Belas Artes in 1980, when he presented a series of figurative drawings. After a long time working with pencil, he has adopted the pastel as his main material for 15 years. In 1999, he decided to work with oil paint. At that time, he moved to New York, where he lived for 11 years and devoted his research to the oil paint on canvas.
In the 90’s, he mostly painted bizarre characters. Then, photography’s lightning and framework was an inspiration for his paintings. “It is impossible not being involved by the weird beauty of Hildebrando’s paintings. The works are formally and technically striking, revealing the author’s virtuosity. These images reveal a very particular view of the world, they represent a unique personal universe, but not necessarily intimate or confessional”, wrote the Brazilian critic Frederico Morais when Hildebrando presented a show at Camargo Vilaça, in 1997.
From 2010 on, he has been working on the series Janelas, geometric representations from photographs of buildings facades. The paintings (acrylic on canvas) reveal once more the rigorous making and the virtuosity of Hildebrando’s work. In 2016, he started a new series inspired by the architecture of the Hong Kong Museum of Art, which he obsessively photographed during a trip to China. The compositions are abstract, since the artist chooses to paint only architectural details.
Hildebrando de Castro has been exhibiting his work since the 80’s in prestigious Brazilian institutions, such as Paço Imperial (Rio de Janeiro, 1998) and Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil (Rio de Janeiro, 1995). He participated of group shows at Rio’s and São Paulo’s Museum of Modern Art, Itaú Cultural (São Paulo, 2003), Haus Der Kulturen Der Welt (Germany), among others. The artist lives and works in São Paulo, Brasil.
Solo exhibitions
2022
Intersecção. Zipper Galeria, São Paulo, Brasil
2018
EDP. Paulo Darzé Galeria, Salvador, Brasil
2017
HKMA. LURIXS: Arte Contemporânea, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
2015
Galeria Oscar Cruz. São Paulo, Brazil
2014
Galeria Paulo Darzé. Salvador, Brazil
2013
Caixa Cultural. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
2012
Galeria Artur Fidalgo. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Galeria Referência. Brasília, Brazil
2011
Galeria Oscar Cruz. São Paulo, Brazil
Galeria Amparo 60. Recife, Brazil
2010
Galeria Laura Marsiaj. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
2009
Paço das Artes. São Paulo, Brazil
2008
Galeria Laura Marsiaj. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
2006
Galeria Laura Marsiaj. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
2005
Galeria Léo Bahia. Belo Horizonte, Brazil
2004
Casa Triângulo. São Paulo, Brazil
Galeria Laura Marsiaj. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
2003
Fay Gold Gallery. Atlanta, EUA
2001
Casa Triângulo. São Paulo, Brazil
1998
Paço Imperial. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1997
Galeria Camargo Vilaça. São Paulo, Brazil
1995
Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1994
Galeria Camargo Vilaça. São Paulo, Brazil
1989
Hard Art Gallery. Zurich, Switzerland
1988
Irene Madder Gallery. Munich, Germany
1987
GB Galeria. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1986
Petit Galerie. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1983
Petit Galerie. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1980
Museu de Belas Artes. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Museu Nacional de Belas Artes. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Group exhibitions
2019
50 anos de Realismo – do fotorrealismo à realidade virtual. Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil. Brasília, Brazil
2018
50 anos de Realismo – do fotorrealismo à realidade virtual. Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil. São Paulo, Brazil
Pequenos Formatos e Múltiplos. LURIXS: Arte Contemporânea. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
2014
Entrecopas. Museu Nacional. Brasília, Brazil
Duplo Olhar. Paço das Artes. São Paulo, Brazil
2011
Galeria Fernando Pradilla. Madrid, Spain
2009
Galeria Fernando Pradilla. Madrid, Spain
2007
Casa de Espanha. Rosário, Argentine
2006
Galeria Thomas Cohn. São Paulo, Brazil
Palácio das Artes. Belo Horizonte, Brazil
2005
Galeria Thomas Cohn. São Paulo, Brazil
2003
Leo Bahia Galeria. Belo Horizonte, Brazil
Espaço Itaú Cultural. São Paulo, Brazil
2001
Museu de Arte Moderna. São Paulo, Brazil
2000
Museu de Arte Moderna. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Galeria Camargo Vilaça. São Paulo, Brasil
1998
Haus Der Kulturen Der Welf. Berlin, Germany
Paço Imperial. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1996
Paço das Artes. São Paulo, Brazil
Earl McGrath Gallery. New York, EUA
Museu de Arte Moderna. Bahia, Brazil
Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio de Janeiro. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1995
IBAC. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1993
Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio de Janeiro. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Galeria Camargo Vilaça. São Paulo, Brazil
1992
Museu Nacional de Belas Artes. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1991
Faygold Gallery. Atlanta, EUA
1990
Fundação Bienal - Salão Paulista. São Paulo, Brazil
Pindar Gallery. New York, EUA
1989
Galeria H.Stern. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1988
Nuremberg Museum. Nuremberg, Germany
O Rosto e a Obra. Galeria IBEU. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1987
Museu de Arte Moderna. Bahia, Brazil
1986
Paço Imperial - Salão Cristian Dior. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Museum of Modern Art. Linz, Austria
1985
Nuremberg Museum. Nuremberg, Germany
Sete Artistas. Museu de Artes de Cuiabá. Cuiabá, Brazil
Velha Mania. Parque Lage. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Museu de Belas Artes - Salão Carioca. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1984
Museu de Arte Moderna - Salão Nacional. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil