1965, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil
Lives and works in São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Afonso Tostes' trajectory began in Rio de Janeiro in the late 1980s with a study on two-dimensional support––later accompanied by a vast sculptural production with wood found on the streets. The artist's interest focuses on the reach of simple methods using these discarded materials, developing sculptures seemingly devoid of structural complexity and that carry the grooves and streaks of previous uses. His practice also proposes sensitive experiences brought to the world based on the artist's critical eye, even if not acting politically nor discussing, through art, life as it is or as it could be.
He began his studies in drawing and painting at Escola Guinnard in Belo Horizonte. In Rio de Janeiro, he was a student of Daniel Senise, Charles Watson and Carlos Zílio at Escola de Artes Visuais do Parque Lage. In 2001, he was considered by the RIO ARTE scholarship and began to dedicate himself to sculpture.
The exhibition Perna de três, at Galeria Paulo Fernandes, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2002), and at Centro Cultural Maria Antônia, São Paulo, Brazil (2003), mark the artist's trajectory when his sculptures start to integrate large installations. Notable exhibitions include those held at Galeria Millan, São Paulo, Brazil (2015); Casa França Brasil, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2014); Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2011), and at Museu de Arte Contemporânea de Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2009).
The installation Cidade pequena, in which small stumps and pieces of wood acquire geometric contours, forming a small-scale city, was exhibited at Galeria Lurix, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2005).
Afonso Tostes also participated in group shows in Brazil and abroad, at institutions such as Museu de Arte do Rio – MAR, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (2020); Instituto Tomie Ohtake, São Paulo, Brazil (2010); Museu da Casa Brasileira, São Paulo, Brazil (2009); Culturgest, Lisbon, Portugal (2000); and Foundation 3,14 in Bergen, Norway (1999). He also participated in the 5th Mercosul Biennial, Porto Alegre, Brazil (2005).