Between September 14 and October 2, Galeria Refresco hosts the exhibition Repartição by artists Edu de Barros and Raoni Azevedo, curated by Clarissa Diniz. The show consists of the relocation of a series of site-specific works to the physical space of Refresco. In other words, works that originally occupied the facade of the Museu de Arte do Rio and Casa Bicho are reconfigured for a new exhibition in a different location. This rearrangement results in a process of re-signifying the works.

The drywall pieces, upon which the paintings were made, carry broadly sacred motifs, reproducing flying buttresses and typical elements of Christian architecture. The act of dividing them so that they can be reassembled into a new composition also resonates with a sacred sense of sharing. Hence, the name Repartição.

The works have a monumental aspect, reproducing stained glass windows, frescoes, and architectural elements in life-size. The illustrations, however, carry a figurative load that escapes the strictly sacred label. At times, they resemble frescoes from classical temples, like the ceiling of the Church of St. Ignatius of Loyola in Rome. At other times, they resemble the mythological and pagan figures of Francisco Goya. Repartição offers a well-balanced interplay between the limits of Christian and pagan imagery, finding in Edu de Barros’s pictorial technique a vehicle for this delicate hybridity.