Walter Tada Nomura, known as TINHO, opened his eyes for the first time in Greater São Paulo, a city that he gradually unraveled, explored and identified.

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There he learned how to read and write by inscribing his name on the walls, leaving his mark on lanes and alleys, seeking a new aesthetic. In the early 90’s Tinho already painted freely experimenting with new techniques, new supports, other materials to better express the relationship between the man and the environment of highly urbanized cities. Observing, while wandering around the great metropolises of the world, the artist sought in the tangles, the individual. In chaos, the essence. In the effects, the cause. Social, economic and urban issues have always been his object of research. His paintings arouse the thinking.

 

They seek to establish communication with the viewer in order to raise and discuss contemporary issues of daily life. From this need arose the characters, so emblematic in his art. Sombre and sad inner children, who bring in their eyes the marks of the society in which they live. Their loneliness reflects all the problems to which they are exposed daily and speaks more than a thousand words. The patchwork dolls convey an ancestral tenderness. They are made of remnants, but they are filled with affection. They are love objects supplying the neediness. It is also very frequent in his work the theme of crashed cars. Nightmares have generated images that talk about an interrupted trip. A kind of censorship that prevents from reaching the ultimate goal.

 

Despite having painting as his main language, TINHO also photographs, creates three-dimensional objects, assembles installations, makes collages, performances, site-specifics ... in short, he transforms into art what he finds in the places where he circulates. In his work, urban life, social and political problems are issues that relate aesthetically and conceptually. His canvases and graffiti greatly contributed to the recognition of Brazil as one of the main producers of urban art. By appropriating what has been rejected, what belongs to everyone and to no one, TINHO creates this delicate game between play-acting and reality. He makes nothing but art, continually recreating the world!

 

 

Isabel Sanson Portella

PhD in Art history and criticism