ARAUJO Juan

Juan Araujo was born in 1971 in Caracas, Venezuela. He lives and works in Lisbon, Portugal.

Since 1998 Araujo has been dedicated to artistic appropriations. He began by creating paintings which investigated the history of art by reproducing artists' work found in books, catalogues and online. From 2004 he has engaged with architectural topics whilst keeping the same basic approach, focusing primarily on private residences built in the mid-twentieth century which exemplify Latin American Modernism; Oscar Niemeyer's ‘Casa das Canoas' (1953) in Rio de Janeiro, Lina Bo Bardis' ‘Casa de Vidro' (1951) in Sao Paulo, and the Luis Barragán house (1948) in Mexico City.

Through the symbiotic relationship between the paintings and the buildings he has observed, Araujo informs the way we think about architecture and Modernism in general. The works can be viewed as a personal reflection, but the opportunity for universal interpretation is equally strong; it is a stunning record of the artist's determination to observe and question Modern life.

In 2019, Araujo was the subject of a major solo presentation ‘Measurable distances of space and air' at PEER in London. In early 2015 Stephen Friedman Gallery, London, held the first UK solo exhibition of work by Araujo. Araujo has exhibited widely throughout South America and internationally including solo presentations at Culturgest, Lisbon, Portugal (2018), Instituto Inhotim, Brumadinho, Minas Gerais, Brazil (2013) and Centro Gallego de Arte Contemporánea, Santiago de Compostela, Spain (2008).

His work has also featured in numerous group exhibitions and biennials including: ‘Lina Bo Bardi: tupí or not tupí. Brasil, 1946-1992', Fundacíon Juan March, Madrid, Spain (2018-2019); 'Southern Geometries, from Mexico to Patagonia', Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain, Paris, France (2018 -2019); ‘FRONT International: Cleveland Triennial', Ohio, USA (2018), ‘Roberto Burle Marx: Brazilian Modernist', Jewish Museum, New York, USA (2016); ‘United States of Latin America', Museum of Contemporary Art, Detroit, Michigan, USA (2015); 'The insides are on the outside', curated by Hans-Ulrich Obrist, Casa de Vidrio, Sao Paulo, Brazil (2013); the Aichi Triennial, Nagoya, Japan (2010), Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo, São Paulo (2009); the Sharjah Biennial, United Arab Emirates (2009); the Mercosul Biennial, Porto Alegre, Brazil (2007); the São Paulo Biennial (2006); the San Diego Museum of Art (2005) and the American National Society, New York (2005). Araujo was included in the group exhibition ‘Galerie de l'Epoque' at Stephen Friedman Gallery, London and also in the ‘Twentieth Anniversary Exhibition' , Stephen Friedman Gallery, London (2015).

His work is found in public collections including the Tate, London, UK; Museum of Modern Art of New York, New York, USA; Jumex Collection, Mexico City, Mexico; Instituto Inhotim, Brumadinho, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Galería de Arte Nacional, Caracas, Venezuela; Museu de Arte Contemporáneo de Caracas, Caracas, Venezuela; Centro Gallego de Arte Contemporánea, Santiago de Compostela, Spain; Museo de Bellas Artes, Caracas; Art Now International Collection, San Francisco; Fundación Mercantil, Caracas; Cisneros Collection, Caracas and the Berezdivin Collection, San Juan.