Fabiana de Barros

1957, São Paulo, Brazil. Lives and works in Geneva, Switzerland.

Fabiana de Barros’ practice focuses on public and contextual art, engaging with issues related to cultural exchange and social relations. Since the late 1980s, she has developed urban interventions, performances, installations, video installations, and web-based projects that invite audiences to become active participants in the construction of the work. Among her most emblematic projects is Fiteiro Cultural, initiated in 1998 and developed in different countries, where it takes on distinct forms by fostering encounters, exchange, and collective experiences.

Fabiana de Barros received a BFA from Fundação Armando Álvares Penteado (FAAP), São Paulo (1983), and completed postgraduate studies at the École Supérieure d’Art Visuel in Geneva, Switzerland (1991). Her work has been featured in major exhibitions including Pinacoteca de São Paulo (1984); 20th, 24th, and 25th São Paulo Biennials (1989, 1998, 2000); the 8th Havana Biennial (2003, Cuba); the 1st Canary Islands Biennial (2006, Las Palmas, Spain); Fundación Telefónica (2005, Spain); the New Contemporary Art Centre (2005, Greece); the 7th Mercosul Biennial (2009, Porto Alegre, Brazil); the 11th Swiss Sculpture Exhibition (2009, Switzerland); and the Biwako Biennale (2010, Japan), among others. In 2009, she received the Projetáveis Award at the Mercosul Biennial, followed by the Interactivos?’10: Ciencia de Barrio award at Medialab-Prado, Madrid, in 2010. She is the author of Aberto [Open]: Fiteiro Cultural (Edições Sesc, 2017) and co-editor of the Art, Work and Ideal book series published by Edições Sesc. Since the 1980s, Fabiana de Barros has organized numerous artistic exchange initiatives between Switzerland and Brazil. She worked as assistant to artist Geraldo de Barros and, since 1989, has co-directed the Geraldo de Barros Archive with Michel Favre. Together, they have organized major exhibitions dedicated to the artist at institutions including the Ludwig Museum (Germany); Sesc Pompeia, Sesc Pinheiros, and Sesc Belenzinho (Brazil); the Musée de l’Elysée (Switzerland); the Kunst-und Kulturstiftung Opelvillen in Rüsselsheim (Germany); and MAMCO – Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain de Genève (Switzerland). She also edited the publications Sobras e Fotoformas (Cosac Naify, 2006) and Geraldo de Barros: Isso (Edições Sesc, 2013). Her works are held in important collections, including the Fundação Bienal de São Paulo, the Museu de Arte Contemporânea da Universidade de São Paulo (MAC USP), the Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand (MASP), AWK Engineering (Switzerland), and the Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS).