Lucía Pizzani: Guardianas Y Serpientes

“Guardianas Y Serpientes” is the title of Venezuelan artist Lucía Pizzani’s first solo exhibition in Brazil, opening on August 1 at Galeria Marilia Razuk. The works in the exhibition are part of her artistic research, which draws on nature as a source of inspiration but combines imaginary and ancestral elements, grounded as well in studies in conservation biology. After a period of immersion on Ilhabela, Pizzani brings to this exhibition works featuring elements inspired by the Atlantic Forest—the local biome of the São Paulo coast and the site of her artistic “residency”—where she was able to create works using raw materials from that location. The exhibition features approximately 20 works, including paintings, drawings, and ceramics.

The artist, who was born in Caracas and now lives in London, explores in her work the interconnections between the narratives of natural history and human experience, as Camila Bechelany states in her curatorial text. “As a result of this immersion in Ilhabela, she was able to develop works using local materials and broaden her references, deepening her research on life cycles and the interdependence between humans and non-humans. Invoking the symbolism of the guardian and the serpent, the exhibition is conceived as a liminal space between the physical and immaterial worlds, where the presence of mythical female figures is embodied in sculptures and images created by the artist.”

Using clay and locally gathered plants, Pizzani has created “sculptures that explore the ideas of metamorphosis and protection, which are also associated with the feminine,” adds Bechelany. Among the elements in this exhibition, Lucía evokes one of the oldest symbols in human history, the serpent—a symbol of regeneration in various ancient cultures, due to its ability to shed its skin. Other traditions view the serpent as a guardian. Drawing on the elements of nature as a source of inspiration, research, and a setting for gathering raw materials allows the artist to imbue her works with the diverse perspectives of her own history from around the world, thereby permeating the history of humanity.

Lucía Pizzani

Lucía Pizzani was born in Caracas in 1975 and moved to London in 2007. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Communication Studies from the Universidad Católica Andrés Bello (Caracas), a certificate in Conservation Biology from Columbia University’s CERC (New York), and a Master of Fine Arts from Chelsea College of Art and Design (London). Her artistic practice, which is investigative in nature and grounded in her studies in conservation biology as well as her involvement with the Venezuelan environmental movement, explores the interconnections between narratives of natural history and human experience. In particular, the core of her work focuses on the relationship between the stories of women in history and literature and the processes of metamorphosis in the natural world. Pizzani works with a wide variety of media, including sculpture, photography, printmaking, drawing, and performance. She has been working with ceramics for over 15 years, while continuing to favor natural materials and to explore their origins and migrations in her art.

Pizzani’s work is included in major art collections in the United Kingdom and Latin America, including the Tate, the Patricia Phelps de Cisneros Collection, and the Essex Collection for Art from Latin America (ESCALA). Other notable exhibitions include the solo show *Tiempo Membrana* at Hacienda La Trinidad and the group exhibition *PlanetB: Climate Change and the New Sublime*, curated by Nicolas Bourriaud, at the Palazzo Bolani in Venice. He participated in the 2025 Amazonas Biennial (Belém) and the Second Klima Biennial at the KunstHaus Wien, which runs through February 2027. It is worth noting his participation in Frieze Sculpture, London (2025). His first institutional exhibition in the United Kingdom opened at the Focal Point Gallery in Southend in March and will now travel to KARST in Plymouth and to the Mostyn in Wales in 2027.

Second Half of the Year at Marilia Razuk Gallery

“Guardianas Y Serpientes” by Lucía Pizzani kicks off Marilia Razuk Gallery’s second-half 2026 programming schedule, which features a series of exhibitions dedicated to Latin American art, with a special focus on the work of internationally renowned women artists. The schedule, which begins in August with Lucía Pizzani’s solo exhibition, includes solo exhibitions by Johanna Calle and Carolina Colichio in the coming months, participation in the SP-Arte Rotas art fair, and a major group exhibition of Latin American artists at the end of the year, curated by Italian art critic Eugenio Viola.