Tito Terapia b. 1977

Paulo Henrique Gonçalves, known artistically as Tito Terapia, was born in 1977 in the East Zone of São Paulo, where he lives and works to this day. His journey in the arts began in 1993 with the practice of pichação (graffiti tagging). In 2020, he met painter and printmaker Rodrigo Andrade, who led an outdoor painting group. This was when he had his first contact with painting and contemporary art. Since then, he has developed his own research, combining references from the pictorial tradition and so-called Brazilian popular art with a strong connection to the territory where he lives and works.

Tito produces small- and medium-format paintings made with natural pigments prepared from earth collected in the East Zone. Although he began his trajectory in graffiti tagging, his current work follows a different path, focusing on paintings that move between genres central to the figurative tradition—such as landscape and still life—while also incorporating both observed, photographically recorded scenes and imagined landscapes.

These works blend elements of everyday life and memory, preserving stories of places that no longer exist, many of which have been swallowed up by real estate speculation. His manual process and use of local materials reinforce the link between his work and the territory, giving the canvases a sense of belonging and resistance.

His first participation in an exhibition was in 2023 at the Centro Cultural Diadema, in the show Horizontes desvelados: avistamentos, still working in the language of graffiti tagging. That same year, he presented his paintings in the auction held by the ali:leste collective at Auroras art space, and in the group show Refundação at Galeria Reocupa, part of the Ocupação 9 de Julho. In 2024, he exhibited alongside Link Museu and Evandro Cesar in Atropelo at Sala 24 de Maio; took part in the group show Ar Livre: paisagem contemporânea em Cidade Tiradentes at Centro Universitário Maria Antônia; exhibited in Situações/paisagens urbanas at Galeria Berenice Arvani; and presented Ágora at Espaço Delirium. Most recently, he participated in the group show Pequenas pinturas at Auroras (2025). Tito has also led two art workshops: at Fábrica de Cultura Cidade Tiradentes (2023) and at Sesc Itaquera (2024).