Bio

Rafael Cunha da Silva is a Portuguese artist born and living in Lausanne, Switzerland. He studied at Edhéa (Valais) and HEAD (Geneva), and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Visual Art at ECAL (Renens).

His artistic practice began with painting, drawing and comics, before he gradually turned his attention to materials and objects. In his most recent work, he returns to illustration, integrating his experimentation with sculpture.

He has shown his work in Lyon, Athens and at various exhibitions in Switzerland, where he presented sculptures, installations, paintings, performances and soundtracks.

He created and curated Pochte Space, an independent art space in Lausanne in 2022.

Statement

My artistic practice includes various issues, nourished by my familial background, personal experiences, and interests.

At the beggining of my practice, drawing, comics, and painting served as my primary modes of exploration, influencing a visual language rooted in popular culture and mythology. As my work evolved, I expanded into sculpture and installation, thus exploring materiality and spatiality.

Central to my artistic inquiry is a reflection on contemporary social and political issues, with a particular focus on labor and production. As an employee myself and as a son of immigrants and workers, I offer a commentary on the hardships and power dynamics inherent in working conditions.

In my recent works, I construct narratives by integrating imagery from both ancient and modern popular culture into working environments. Popular culture, which is intrinsically linked to labour, thus becomes a material for exploration, subversion and politicisation.