Zezão

(b. 1970s)
José Augusto Amaro Handa, known as Zezão, is a Brazilian urban artist who rose to prominence in São Paulo’s graffiti scene during the 1990s. Influenced by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Zezão developed a highly personal visual language that combines raw street energy with expressive mark-making. He paints on walls, abandoned buildings, and unconventional surfaces across the world, often incorporating whatever materials are at hand into his work. His compositions, rich in colour and texture, carry a sense of improvisation and freedom, while also challenging ideas of where and how art should exist. Today, Zezão’s work bridges the gap between the street and the gallery, retaining its rebellious vitality.