Iran do Espírito Santo on Drawing, Precision, and the Compass as Sculpture

Ahead of his solo show "Peças Frias — O Desenho" at Fortes D'Aloia & Gabriel in São Paulo, opening June 30, artist Iran do Espírito Santo sat down with fellow artist Lucia Koch for an in-depth conversation. The exhibition brings together drawings and sculptures from 2007 to 2025, including "Compasso" (2025), a human-scale compass sculpture that took seven years to fabricate, and "Sem título (Alambrado)" (2007–2026), a wall drawing previously shown at the 2007 Venice Biennale and now presented in Brazil for the first time. Koch and Espírito Santo discuss the tension between precision and failure, the dual nature of functional objects versus geometric forms, and the transformation of drawing instruments—compass, ruler, template—into artworks themselves. Espírito Santo explains that the compass's 1.80m height references the Vitruvian Man rather than Le Corbusier's Modulor, and that its anthropomorphic quality emerged intuitively. He reflects on his long-standing interest in repetition and particularity, the relationship between concrete reality and abstraction, and the role of anonymous craftsmanship in realizing his works. The conversation also touches on "Linha e Sombra 4" (2013–2026), where line and shadow become one, and the tautological presence of "Porca" (2017–2023). Espírito Santo notes his fatigue with the market's demand for constant novelty, leading him to revisit earlier works.