Lau Baldo

Porto Alegre – RS, 1994

Lau Baldo is a photographer and independent artist. He finds the main themes for his works in the streets, with a focus on documenting gender issues and the LGBTQI+ scene in those spaces.

“Ever since I began to question my gender identity, I began searching for myself in other queer bodies”, he says. In this process of discoveries, he met and portrayed, in 2017, Cassandra Calabouço, “an artist and drag queen from Porto Alegre who sparked my interest in transformation. We spent one night together, and I was able to follow her work process from beginning to end. On that night, I realized all of the possibilities for what we can be!”, he recalls.

From then on, Lau Baldo’s photo series have become a sort of manifesto that portray the search for a welcoming space of legitimation of all possibilities of love, desire, and affection. Also involved in audiovisual production, he has created “Nome morto” [“Dead name”]. “After some time cutting the stickers with my old name, I realized how significant this physical and internal act  was for me. It was a process of reinventing and rebirthing myself!”, he says.

Recently, he has taken part in collective exhibitions at the Chico Lisboa Association, in Porto Alegre (2019) and in the “Expo Lá Fora” (2020) at the Contemporary Art Museum of Rio Grande do Sul, during the month for trans visibility. In 2021, he was one of the photographers awarded by Mídia Ninja’s open call.

Artworks:

“Impermanência” [“Impermanence”] (2020). Digital photography.

“Uma noite com Cassandra Calabouço” [“A night with Cassandra Calabouço”] (2017). Series of digital photographs.

“Nome morto” [“Dead name”] (2020). Video performance. Art direction and Editing: Lau Baldo. Duration: 32”. Available here.