The Collection

Elian Almeida works across painting, photography, video, and installation, situating himself within a generation of artists committed to reasserting protagonism to figures and bodies historically marginalized within both Brazilian society and the Western canon. Central to his practice is a decolonial inquiry into the experience and performativity of the Black body in contemporary Brazil — one pursued through the recovery of images, narratives, and characters from the past as instruments of empowerment and the broader dissemination of Afro-Brazilian historiography.

Almeida's research operates on two intersecting axes: the restoration of Black biographical subjects whose historical significance has been systematically erased, and a critical examination of the structural violence directed at racialized bodies in contemporary Brazilian society. His ongoing series Vogue exemplifies this convergence — appropriating the visual language of the iconic fashion magazine to reframe portraits of Black individuals, inviting viewers to interrogate the modes through which these subjects have been represented and circulated in Brazilian visual culture.

Almeida is represented by Galeria Nara Roesler. His solo exhibitions include Antes – agora – o que há de vir (Nara Roesler, Rio de Janeiro, 2021) and Pessoas que eram coisas que eram pessoas (Nara Roesler, São Paulo, 2023). His work has been presented internationally, including at Nara Roesler New York and CFHILL, Sweden, and he was nominated for the PIPA Prize in 2023.