Márcia Falcão’s presentation at the 36th Bienal de São Paulo — Not all travellers walk roads: Of humanity as practice immerses the viewer among five large-scale paintings. Together, they synthesize three years of research, forming a cohesive narrative around the body, a central theme in the artist’s trajectory. Her paintings seek to reaffirm presences historically rendered invisible, not through value judgments but by asserting their existence. Since 2022, Falcão has begun to extrapolate the anatomy of these bodies — multiplying limbs and heads — as an act of freedom, in which such alterations integrate seamlessly into a pictorial reality that feels more real than natural anatomy itself.

Márcia Falcão, Posição 22, Ioga Psicológica series, 2025. Ph. Rafael Salim

Her research unfolds across distinct series. In Ioga Psicológica, the body appears in claustrophobic environments, where force and immobility are held in tension. From this, two paths emerge: Monumentais and Capoeira em Paleta Alta. In the former, scale and chromatic contrast generate intense presences, with compositions that partially obscure bodies beneath turbulent movements. In the Capoeiras, the latent energy of Ioga is released into dynamism, explored through brushwork and chromatic contamination. Passinho, referencing the dance rooted in Rio de Janeiro funk, expands Falcão’s approach to drawing. Here, rhythmic repetition leads to compositions built from hatching, in which a single frame unfolds into mirrorings and distortions, evoking figures such as contemporary Madonnas, the Venus of Willendorf, and the legendary outlaw “Cara de Cavalo.” At this stage, the research grounds itself in history and time, traversing motherhood, freedom, and memory. With Malandra Não Pára, the focus shifts to the potency of pause. Unlike the immobile force of Ioga, here the body rests under its own weight, set against the movement of the background. From this emerges an accusatory and conscious gaze, capable of reflecting on its condition and denouncing violence.

Márcia Falcão, Meia lua de compasso, Capoeira em Paleta Alta series, 2025. Ph Rafael Salim

Marcia Falcão’s studio, Rio de Janeiro, 2025

The 36th Bienal de São Paulo is led by General Curator Prof. Dr. Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung, together with his team of co-curators Alya Sebti, Anna Roberta Goetz, and Thiago de Paula Souza, as well as at-large co-curator Keyna Eleison.

September 6, 2025 — November 1, 2026
Parque Ibirapuera, São Paulo, Brazil