Born in Rio de Janeiro, José Roberto Bassul (1957) grew up in Brasilia, where he earned a degree and master’s degree in architecture and urban planning. He took photography classes as a teenager. After a long, intense, and diverse practice as an architect, he returned his artistic dedication exclusively to photography. Bassul defines his visual works as “an attempt to draw thoughts, project desires, and build spaces for the imagination.” In geometric visual constructions, or in experimental approaches, his artistic research focuses on the urban landscape and contemporary aspects of city life. His production operates at the intersection of social, historical, political, conceptual, formal, and imaginary dimensions.
“O Sol Só Vem Depois”/ “The Sun Only Comes Later”
These images evoke situations where, individually or collectively, we face loss, defeat, frustration, disenchantment, and fear. Abandoned squares and parks, disused sports fields, deserted streets, demolished houses, and dark paths are imbued with a certain lyricism, rays of light. As if the nights knew that the sun would only rise later.
“Paisagem Concretista” / “Concrete Landscape”
Far from depicting Brasília’s monuments, “Paisagem Concretista” explores the affinities between Lúcio Costa’s urban planning and concretism in the visual arts. Although they have traveled parallel paths, the two interact in the aesthetic language that the observer perceives as they carefully explore the city’s open spaces.
“Linhas de Sombra”/ “Shadow Lines”
Photographs of buildings common to several cities make up the series “Linhas de Sombra”. Minimalist, formed solely by lines and surfaces arranged on a single plane, the images move away from the representation of their object: the architectural building. Visual recordings, similar to drawings or engravings, provoke doubts and suggest a questioning of photographic language.
