Sensual transformations between cohesion and decay

The artworks deal with themes related to the body, territory, and cultural memory, examining colonial archives as well as ecological crises: Diambe (*1993) has created a complex installation for his largest institutional solo exhibition to date, consisting of newly created sculptures, paintings, and a film work. Diambe works with various materials such as bronze, textiles, and egg tempera, but also plant dyes, foodstuffs, and beeswax, which is a particular focus of the exhibition. Through Diambe's creative process, this diverse, elusive material becomes a symbol of change and quiet strength, oscillating between fragility and steadfastness. Visitors move back and forth between the sculptures, which rest on honeycomb-like pedestals, like bees in a beehive. Diambe. Bees beings beans is on display at the Kunsthalle Basel until April 12.

Diambe, born in Rio de Janeiro, lives and works in São Paulo. Previous solo exhibitions have been held in these cities and in Zurich. In addition to the use of unusual materials, Diambe's work is interwoven with references to Brazilian modernism, the art of Neoconcretismo, local architecture, and ecological forms that mutate into new motifs in unpredictable ways.