Born in 1948 in Rio de Janeiro, Cildo Meireles belongs to a generation of Brazilian artists who came of age at the onset of the 1970s under the dual influence of conceptual art and the Brazilian Neo-Concrete Movement. Aiming to fully engage its audience, Meireles’ work smartly plays with physicality and the senses. Although often directly inspired by specific news events and political contexts – especially in relation to censorship and the repression of individual freedoms –, his art addresses universal themes and issues.

Cildo Meireles’ recent exhibitions include Cildo Meireles: Installations, at HangarBicocca in Milan (2014); Cildo Meireles, at the Museo Reina Sofia in Madrid (2013), then at the Museu de Arte Contemporânea de Serralves in Porto (2013-2014); Cildo Meireles, at the MACBA in Barcelona (2009); Cildo Meireles, at the Tate Modern in London (2008); Cildo Meireles, at the Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain in Strasbourg (2003); and Cildo Meireles — retrospective at the New Museum in New York (1999).

Cildo Meireles was awarded the 2008 Velazquez Prize for Plastic Arts for his career achievements as well as the 2023 Roswitha Haftmann Prize.