By Giuliano de Miranda
No body remains the same throughout its life. Matter doesn't either. It shrinks, oxidizes, breaks, hardens, accumulates marks, and records the passage of time in ways that cannot always be predicted. On different scales, body and matter share the same condition: both are subject to continuous transformations.
It is from this perception that "I am the other", an exhibition that brings together previously unseen works by Lando and Rosana Paste na Matias Brotas GalleryOn GHT - VitóriaAlthough they conduct independent research and use different materials, the two artists find common ground in understanding artistic creation as an ongoing process of investigation.
In conversation with the artists, an aspect becomes clear that is not always evident at first glance to the visitor. Both Lando and Rosana speak less about the finished works than about the processes that gave rise to them. The studio appears as a space of permanent investigation, where error, chance, and the unexpected response of materials cease to be obstacles and become part of the construction of the work.
In recent months, Lando decided to return to the position of apprentice by dedicating a period of training to ceramics in Portugal. The experience did not signify a break with his previous work, but rather the continuation of a trajectory that has always moved between different languages, refusing to limit his research to a single expressive medium. “It was a very enriching moment. When you put yourself back in the position of apprentice, you realize that there are always other possibilities for the work. Ceramics led me to experiment with new procedures and opened paths that will certainly continue to have repercussions in my production,” he says.
Throughout his career, he has built a body of work marked by sculpture, photography, drawing, and various experiments with materials. What remains common is an interest in the transformations of matter and the way time modifies both objects and the perception of those who observe them.
Rosana Paste follows a similar path, although starting from a different sensory experience. Her work arises from observing her own body and the marks left by the passage of time, transforming intimate experiences into sculptures that transcend autobiographical elements to address issues shared by any individual.
Among the highlights of the exhibition is Lando's series "Heads." The sculptures reject the traditional logic of portraiture and present faces that seem to exist between memory and imagination. Each piece preserves the marks of manual modeling, the manipulation of clay, and the action of fire, making the process of its construction visible. The works suggest open identities, subject to changes imposed by time, experience, and the material itself. This investigation continues in the photographic series "South Bank," in which the landscape ceases to function merely as a documentary record and assumes a sensitive dimension. The images reveal spaces where permanence and transformation coexist, showing that places also accumulate marks of time and memory.
In the artist's works, this reflection takes on a different materiality. In Empty Head, the void ceases to represent absence and becomes a constitutive element of the sculpture. The internal space remains open to the observer's imagination, causing that which is not filled to acquire the same importance as the bronze surface. The artist shifts attention from the finished form to that which remains under construction, suggesting that every identity retains spaces that are still unknown.
The exhibition reaches one of its most expressive moments in the installation "Cipó" (Vine), where bronze and glass interact to construct a structure that seems to expand through the space. The work brings together materials of different natures and suggests growth, continuity, and interdependence. Like the plant that gives it its name, the installation occupies the environment, establishing connections, circumventing obstacles, and revealing that all existence develops from the bonds it establishes with others.
The willingness to experiment is also evident in the diversity of materials brought together in the exhibition. Ceramics, bronze, photography, glass, installations, and objects coexist without hierarchy, demonstrating that each medium offers distinct possibilities for reflecting on memory, identity, and transformation. The works construct a journey in which matter actively participates in the creation of meaning.
In Lando's ceramics, the clay retains the marks of gesture and the action of fire, revealing a process that remains visible even after the pieces are finished. In Rosana's sculptures, the bronze records measurements of the body itself, preserving an instant that no longer exists in the same way. In both cases, the material ceases to be merely a support and becomes a witness to the passage of time and the inevitable transformations that accompany all existence.
This understanding also modifies the visitor's experience. Instead of traversing a succession of isolated works, the public is invited to establish relationships between them. The heads sculpted by Lando dialogue with Rosana's body sculptures; the photographs broaden the reflection on memory beyond the human figure; the installations expand these questions into the gallery space. Little by little, it becomes clear that no work intends to assert a fixed or definitive identity.
In this sense, the title "I am the other" serves as an invitation to reflection. Throughout the journey, it becomes evident that identity does not correspond to an immutable essence, but to a continuous process of construction, traversed by memory, relationships, and the materials that surround us. The other ceases to represent merely someone external and becomes an indispensable part of who we are.
At the end of the visit, the impression remains that both Lando and Rosana Paste reject any idea of definitive conclusion. Their works preserve questions instead of answers, transforming the exhibition into a space for shared investigation.
