Rodrigo Franzao

Rodrigo Franzao’s biggest influence may be his mother. His childhood memories are full of the sounds of scissors cutting through fabric, needles rolling against each other and sewing machines. She was a seamstress. He is a textile artist.

Franzao’s embrace of textiles runs deep. His current body of work consists of acrylic resin on premium eco-friendly German made paper, infused in latex and mounted on canvas. Franzao purposefully folds and hand places each piece of paper into form, creating sculptural works that undulate with an organic rhythm. The results are dramatic. Each work of art has a natural balance to it. Franzao’s work hangs as abstract, contemporary statements that are grounded in nature’s beauty.

Of his work, Franzao says, “The fusion of two-dimensional and three-dimensional effects in my work creates a symbiosis between form and color, light and shadow, movement and inertia. I weave a visual narrative that transcends borders, inviting deep contemplation about life, society, and the interconnectedness of seemingly opposing elements.”

Franzao’s emergence into the fine art world has been notable. In recent years he has founded a museum dedicated to textile art, called Museu Textil along with a magazine dedicated to the art form called InTheArts. His artwork is held in private collections around the world, notably in the American cities of New York, Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles and more, along with the countries of Germany, Portugal, Spain and his native Brazil. His art may be viewed publicly at The National Arts Club in New York, the Exhibition Center Odivelas Museum in Lisbon, Portugal and the Superior Tribunal de Justiça Museum in Brasília, Brazil.

Franzao was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil in 1982. He immigrated to New Orleans, Louisiana in 2022 thanks to an Individuals with Extraordinary Ability or Achievement visa.