Founded in São Paulo in 2006, Kogan Amaro Gallery presently has two units. The headquarters is housed in a 230 square-meter, double-height space in the heart of the Jardins neighborhood in São Paulo. In May 2019, the gallery inaugurated its Zurich branch in a 350 square-meter space that opened with an exhibition by Nuno Ramos. Kogan Amaro/Zurich is based at the Löwenbräu Cultural Center, a museum and gallery hub in Switzerland’s liveliest and largest city.
The gallery’s vibrant contemporary program features the work of emerging artists such as Samuel de Saboia, Élle de Bernardini, Mirela Cabral, Bruno Miguel, Daniel Mullen, Mundano, Patricia Carparelli and Tangerina Bruno, as well as established Brazilian artists such as Nazareth Pacheco and Marcia Pastore, to name a few. Kogan Amaro stages twofold events related in concept such as contemporary artist Fernanda Figueiredo’s show, “The Visit of Max Bill”, that happened in the Zurich gallery at the same time as the historical exhibition, “Concrete Art of the 1950s”. This collective show displayed works by the founders of the Brazilian Concrete movement, who were inspired by Bill’s visit to the 1st edition of the São Paulo Bienal in 1951, such as deceased artists Willys de Castro, Lothar Charoux, Hercules Barsotti, Luiz Sacilotto and Judith Lauand. The Swiss unit has also organized historical solo exhibitions with the works of Frans Krajcberg, Servulo Esmeraldo and Flavio de Carvalho.
Kogan Amaro’s portfolio with reputed artists with solid institutional careers and emerging contemporary artists reflects the daring spirit of the young partners at its helm, the couple Ksenia Kogan Amaro and Marcos Amaro, both 35 years old, who prior to the gallery have always been involved with art. Managing partner and co-founder of the gallery, Moscow-born Ksenia Kogan Amaro is also an acclaimed international classical pianist, art collector and performance artist. Ksenia has designed a project she performed worldwide with actor John Malkovich, collaborated with Placido Domingo, created projects for UNESCO and performed concerts for heads of state and the royal families of Spain and Belgium. Marcos Amaro, the founder of the gallery, is himself a visual artist, art collector, philosophy and finance major, entrepreneur and art patron as well as president of the FAMA Museum and FAMA Campo.
Kogan Amaro Gallery also acts as a representative of the Fábrica de Arte Marcos Amaro. The institution promotes free art education for the local community, including public and private schools; promotes seminars; organizes exhibitions; provides scholarships and residencies for artists; has an annual award given to artists chosen by a jury of art critics and experts; as well as fosters interchange with Brazilian and foreign cultural institutions, while aiming at the preservation, promotion and presentation of Brazilian and international art. FAMA was established in 2012 in a 25,000 square-meter listed property of an early 20th century textile mill in the city of Itú, a region with a population of two million, a fifty-minute drive from the state capital of São Paulo. Assembled since 2008 and focused in Brazilian art, its permanent collection boasts over 2,000 works beginning in the 18th century (Aleijadinho) going through Brazilian 20th century modernism (Tarsila do Amaral, Pancetti, Di Cavalcanti, Portinari, Flavio de Carvalho, Brecheret, Lasar Segall, Antonio Gomide, Anita Malfatti, Maria Martins, etc.) to the FAMA Campo, solely dedicated to land art. The strength of the permanent collection lies in its contemporary and conceptual artworks created by iconic artists such as Tunga, Leda Catunda, Jac Leirner, Adriana Varejão, Cildo Meireles, Maria Nepomuceno, Carmela Gross, Laura Lima and Nelson Leirner, many of these works having been exhibited in past editions of the São Paulo Bienal, Venice Biennale and/or Kassel Documenta. The collection consists mainly of large-format tridimensional works but there is also a great number of paintings, engravings, drawings, photos, installations, etc. Since June 2018, FAMA’s extensive outdoors were revamped into a sculpture garden with large works by renowned artists such as Nuno Ramos, Caciporé Torres, Emanoel Araujo, Gilberto Salvador, Frans Krajcberg, José Resende, José Spaniol, Marcos Amaro, Mario Cravo, Mestre Didi, Sergio Romagnolo and Henrique Oliveira. FAMA Museum is the largest private art heritage site in the state of São Paulo and one of the most inventive museums in Brazil aimed at promoting and disseminating the country’s rich and diverse art legacy.