Statement
The subject matter of my work is waste, overconsumption and social inequality. Trash and objects found in the street are valuable, and not only for aesthetic reasons. The brands, logos and packaging depicted in my work are objects with an inherent duality, both desirable and despicable, a clear byproduct of having worked in advertising for more than 20 years.
Biography
I am originally from São Paulo, Brazil and have also lived in Lima, New York City and currently in Los Angeles. These urban environments have shaped my memory and permeate most of my work. I am partly self-taught and partly homeschooled. My father is an illustrator, and as a kid I spent many hours drawing and watching him work. He was a constant source of inspiration and encouragement, but having an artist father also proved frustrating at times. At 17, I remember comparing my work to his and thinking my drawings and paintings were not good enough. I quit. I pursued a career in advertising as an Art Director, something that still allowed me to exercise my interest in art but without requiring mastery with the pencil or brush. 20 years later, while living in New York City and being exposed to its many contrasts, my desire to pick up the brushes intensified. Now I am back to painting and this time I’m not quitting.
CV
Solo
2020, “IndigNation” Thinkspace Gallery, Culver City, CA
2018, “AmeriCan’t” Thinkspace Gallery, Culver City, CA
2017, "Not Forgotten" Thinkspace Gallery, Culver City, CA
2017, "Discarded", Thinkspace Gallery, Culver City, CA
Group
2021 “Lucid” at Beinart Gallery Victoria, Australia
2021 “Small Works” at Beinart Gallery Victoria, Australia
2021 “What a Weird Time to be Alive” at A. Hurd Gallery, Albuquerque, NM
2021 “Vanguard” at Outre Gallery, Melbourne, Australia
2021 “Pow Wow Hawaii” Thinkspace Gallery, Culver City, CA
2020 “The Price of Everything and the Value of Nothing” Thinkspace Gallery, Culver City, CA
2020 “Instruments of Change” Thinkspace Gallery, Culver City, CA
2020 “15 Years of Thinkspace” Thinkspace Gallery, Culver City, CA
2019, “LAX / MSY” Curated by Thinkspace Gallery at Red Truck Gallery, New Orleans, LA
2019, “Movement” Curated by Thinkspace Gallery at Long Beach, CA
2019, “LAX / SFO: Third time is the charm” Curated by Thinkspace Gallery at Heron Arts, San Francisco, CA
2019, “Small Works 2019” Curated by Beinart Gallery Victoria, Australia
2019, “Paris Urban Art Fair” Curated by Galerie42b Paris, France
2018, “Scope Miami Beach 2018” Curated by Thinkspace Gallery at Scope Art Show, Miami, FL
2018, “Remembered // Imagined (Part 2)” Co-Curated by Antler Gallery & Paradigm Gallery at Philadephia, PA
2018, “Remembered // Imagined (Part 1)” Co-Curated by Antler Gallery & Paradigm Gallery at Portland, OR
2018, “Scope Basel 2018” Curated by Thinkspace Gallery at Basel, Switzerland
2018, “POW! WOW! Exploring The New Contemporary Art Movement”, Curated by Thinkspace Gallery at the Honolulu Museum Of Art School, HI
2017, "LAX / JFK", Curated by Thinkspace Gallery at Spoke Art, NY
2017, "LAX / DTW : Detroit Hustle II", Curated by Thinkspace Gallery at Inner State Gallery, Detroit, MI
2017, "Flourish", Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum – Mesa, AZ
2016, "Model Migration", Residency Art, Inglewood, CA
2015, "Small Wonders 4", Arch Enemy Arts, Philadelphia, PA
2015, "Murica - A Patriotic Art Show", PhilaMOCA: Philadelphia Mausoleum of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia, PA.
2015, "Wide Open 6", Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition, Brooklyn, NY, juried by Rujeko Hockley, Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art at the Brooklyn Museum of Art.
2015, "Recycle", Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition, Brooklyn, NY, juried by Elissa Goldstone, Director of Exhibitions of the Socrates Sculpture Park,
2015, “You Art What You Eat”, Union Street Gallery, Chicago, IL, juried by Shannon Stratton
2015, “Salon Show featuring Tampa Bay Artists”, Wandering Eye, Tampa, FL.
Press
Andy Smith. "Alvaro Naddeo’s Intricate Watercolors Examine Waste" Hi-Fructose, January 2018
Bekka Utermohlen, "Interview with Alvaro Naddeo for “Not Forgotten” Sour Harvest, September 2017
Eduardo Vea, "Alvaro Naddeo, una pausa tras la publicidad" Yorokobu, November 24, 2016
Claire de Dobay Rifelj, Contemporary Art Review Los Angeles, August 04, 2016
Trip Magazine #252 March, 2016 (Brazil)
David Schonauer, Dispatches from Latin America, 03 Feb. 2016
Anthony Falcon, “Eleven emerging artists you should know”, Untitled Publications, 2 Feb. 2015
Kaylin Pound, “Artist Highlights the Grittiness of NYC Streets”, Big Appled, 12 Dec. 2014
Anthony Falcon, “Interview”, Untitled Publications, 5 Dec. 2014
