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Walmor Corrêa

(1960– ) Born in Florianópolis, SC. Lives and works in São Paulo.

Investigation and anatomical expression have become the central themes of Walmor Corrêa's body of work. He provides the most vital expression of this artistic lineage, representing the strongest cultural memory of humanity ever depicted, from the Paleolithic period to the future. The genealogy he presents is especially apparent in the traditions of Mediterranean art, the Renaissance, and modern scientific schools.

His work stems from a lineage that intertwines perception, analysis, material and form science, anatomy, speculation, imagination, and the ability to interpret and unveil culture through body shapes, the images that portray us, the creatures we live with, and our world. The terms of this semantic equation involve knowledge, art, culture, science, anatomy, and the body. The artist's creatures/creations are hybrid plants and animals. They point to a whimsical world and represent the taxidermy of the fantastic wildlife that confounds us, especially since they are not mere artistic hallucinations, but actual scientific possibilities. Walmor Corrêa's works have been widely showcased in Brazil and Europe.

The artist describes the inspiration for the works he created:

"I was walking through the gardens of the old Maternidade Matarazzo, paying attention to the vegetation. My gaze was soon drawn to the small and tiny herbs and flowers. Birds or the wind brought some of them. I also look carefully at the mature trees and the testimonies of those who lived there, worked, or received medical care. I noticed that many of the plants and herbs there (breakstones, guava trees, mulberries, marapuama, among others) were known and used in folk medicine in the form of infusions, essences, ointments, etc. I was driven by the same sentiment that sparked my interest in the Ver-o-Peso market, a place where one can find a 'solution' for a myriad of things (this large market located in Belém do Pará, northern Brazil, supplies the city with various goods, typical foods, native fruits, vegetables, fish, meats, and medicinal herbs from the Amazon).

I immediately began to research these species. Many had indigenous names, others referred to their potential cures, resulting in very interesting phonemes: Virgo Herb, Mimosa Pudica, The Love of the Donkey, etc. I also broadened my interest in herbs used in the rites of African religions – which attract due to their intention – and learned that their names allure almost like magic/spell. Cipó Mil Homens is a herbal infusion that would give strength to 'a thousand men', and Alevante is a bath herb that purifies low/demonic spirits. My goal is always to create, through art, drawing, and painting, boards of hybrid or grafted herbs and plants that together would have their effects potentiated. When popular names caught my attention, I sought their references from a new botanical form.

For Rosewood São Paulo, I began with the help of a botanist who regularly visits the Amazon region, and I recorded the scientific species and the new plant species."

The three elevators of the Maternidade building carry Walmor Corrêa's creations — aphrodisiac, energetic, and hallucinogenic works — which depict Brazilian herbs, some non-endemic but all found in the country. Some are the artist's imagined creations, telling the tale of mysterious hybrid plants that astonish viewers. Corrêa's works will also be in the four elevators of the Mata Atlântica tower by Jean Nouvel, at the Rosewood São Paulo.

Represented by the gallery: arturfidalgo.com.br/walmor

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