Pixação: Resistance and Rebellion

June 27th - August 31st 2025 - STRAAT Groundwork Space

Pixação emerged in Brazil as a form of popular expression in the early 20th century but evolved into a youth movement from the peripheries in the late 1970s in Rio de Janeiro, spreading to São Paulo in the early 1980s. Its monochromatic, sharp, angular lettering, originating in São Paulo, became a distinctive hallmark in global street art — not mere vandalism but a raw declaration of existence by marginalised youth.

Bold techniques like spray paint, rollers, climbing, and later abseiling transformed urban architecture into a battleground for symbolic occupation and contestation. This exhibition, Pixação: Resistance and Rebellion, traces the movement’s evolution through three key phases: its emergence in the 1980s, vertical confrontations in the 2000s, and innovations in the 2010s.

LIXOMANIA!.zé’s global tags embody its roots (1984–2006), embedding a resistant spirit within Brazil’s urban fabric and beyond. Cripta Djan’s biennale disruptions mark its confrontational peak (2008–2012), merging street rebellion with artistic discourse. Eneri’s feminist rappelling heralds a new generation (2015–present), redefining pixação as socio-political critique and empowerment.

Pixação stands at the intersection of protest and aesthetics—a dynamic language of rebellion, identity, and reinvention.

Pixação: Resistance and Rebellion is on show until August 31st, 2025, and can be attended with a regular entry ticket. Plan your visit here.

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