American, b. 1961
Vik Muniz is an influential contemporary Brazilian artist best known for his complex photographic works. Sourcing a wide variety of eclectic and found materials—chocolate, jelly, toys, and trash—Muniz recreates iconic art historical works and scenes from popular culture. By displaying the final piece as a photograph, he explores memory, perception, and the nature of images as represented in arts and communication.
Born Vicente José de Oliveira Muniz December 20, 1961 in São Paulo, Brazil, Muniz began to discover art in the books he borrowed from his high school library. After studying advertising at the Fundação Armando Álvares Penteado de São Paulo, he moved to Brooklyn, NY, with his family in 1983. The artist began his career as a sculptor in the late 1980s, but he gradually became more interested in drawing and photography.
Muniz starred in the documentary film Waste Land (2010) tracking the course of his project Pictures of Garbage (2008). This series of large-scale images was created with the help of catadores—the people who scour Rio’s sizable trash dump for recyclable materials. Muniz was named a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for his social activism. He currently lives and works between Brooklyn, NY and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Born Vicente José de Oliveira Muniz December 20, 1961 in São Paulo, Brazil, Muniz began to discover art in the books he borrowed from his high school library. After studying advertising at the Fundação Armando Álvares Penteado de São Paulo, he moved to Brooklyn, NY, with his family in 1983. The artist began his career as a sculptor in the late 1980s, but he gradually became more interested in drawing and photography.
Muniz starred in the documentary film Waste Land (2010) tracking the course of his project Pictures of Garbage (2008). This series of large-scale images was created with the help of catadores—the people who scour Rio’s sizable trash dump for recyclable materials. Muniz was named a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for his social activism. He currently lives and works between Brooklyn, NY and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
