With a distinctive visual repertoire that evokes images and objects from everyday life, Rochelle Costi employed photography, video, and installations in works that challenge conventional notions of daily life and memory—often with irony and humor. Collecting and photography merge in her compositions, prompting viewers to encounter memories and experiences that feel familiar.
In Passatempo (2018), Costi explores the concept of “time” through a large-scale “clock without numbers” that includes the letters forming the title of the work, reflecting on the ambiguity between the ideas of passage and permanence. When the piece was first exhibited, it was part of an installation featuring a series of videos from the artist’s personal archive, covering the years 1981 to 1988 in the cultural scene of Porto Alegre. The footage shown at the time was edited with the aim of retrieving moments from the post-dictatorship transition, as well as spaces that would later become cultural landmarks in the city.
Gabriela Wieczorek
Rochelle Costi (Brazil, 1961-2022) is an artist who has worked with photography, video, and installation. Her conception of photography as a form of collecting is directly reflected in her work, which is usually organized in series. The artist mixes photographs with other forms of artistic expression and often uses them for installation. Highlights include exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art of São Paulo, the 24th and 29th São Paulo Biennials, the Neuer Berliner Kunstverein, the Museu del Barrio in New York, and the Centro de Arte Reina Sofia in Madrid. She participated in two editions of the Havana Biennial. She lived a considerable part of her career in São Paulo and began her career in Porto Alegre, also in Brazil.
