Visual artist · Art director
TicoCanato
From São Paulo’s East Side to public collections, galleries and brands in six countries. Graffiti, canvas, fashion, sculpture and the world of Ondi.
01Street
From the walls of São Mateus to the Palácio dos Bandeirantes collection, alongside Tarsila, Portinari and Volpi.
Tico grew up tracing gaming magazines on wax paper and found graffiti at 15. He studied advertising, spent more than a decade designing prints and identities for fashion labels and turned it all into a language of his own — now on murals, in galleries, on art cars, in collections and in his character, Ondi.
- his first spray can, at 15
- 1998
- countries with works and shows
- 6
- brands served
- 50+
- consecutive SXSW editions
- 3
02Walls
At street
scale
Façades, gable walls, warehouses and entire rooms. The wall is where the work meets people who have never set foot in a museum.
For brands, cities and communities
Every wall starts with studying the place: who walks by, the daylight, what the brand needs to say. Then come the cans, the layers and the characters.
Leo Madeiras · Intercity · 3Corp · Prival · R9 Ronaldo Academy · São Paulo Metro · Hotel Pestana
03Character
Ondi
Ondi was born on sleepless nights of fear and anxiety. A skull-like face, a neutral gaze, bared teeth and a seam that stitches patches together — each patch, a story.
He lives in a pre-apocalypse that looks a lot like the present and speaks about deforestation, mental health and social values. Over time he gained feet and hands, clothes and tattoos, and moved into other worlds: 3D, toy art, fashion.
- Wall
- Canvas
- Paper
- Sculpture
- Toy art
- 3D
- Fashion
The sacred is not for sale.
— from the O Sagrado solo show, 2024
04Gallery
From the wall
to the white cube
Three solo shows in two years, group shows with Brazilian and Portuguese artists, and works in public collections.
Solo shows
- 2025A CasaPinacoteca Fórum das Artes, Botucatu
- 2024O SagradoHUM Galeria de Artes e Projetos, São Paulo
- 2024OcultoGaleria Alma da Rua, São Paulo
Large-format canvases with Ondi and his parallel worlds — spray, acrylic and mixed media in works up to 1.5 meters.
O Sagrado solo show
OCULTO solo show
O Sagrado solo show
Shortlisted · 2026 Governor Award
Solo show · Pinacoteca de Botucatu · 2025
A Casa
From June to August 2025, Tico took over the Pinacoteca Fórum das Artes in Botucatu with monumental faces, clotheslines, fabrics and sculptures — a reflection on the place of the periphery inside the museum. The show earned him a nomination for the 2026 São Paulo State Governor Award, one of the state’s leading art honors.
See the full journey05Brands
When a brand
calls the artist
Art cars, façades, uniforms, collections and live painting. Street art as a brand language, without losing the signature.
Case · 2026
Nissan Kicks
Art Car
To celebrate ten years of the Kicks, Nissan handed Tico the new SUV to turn into an artwork: Japanese culture meeting Brazilian street art, layer upon layer of spray paint.
The car was unveiled at the 55th Cherry Blossom Festival in Campos do Jordão after a press test drive from São Paulo, and became the stage for a graffiti workshop with the guests.
- Brand
- Nissan
- Occasion
- Kicks at 10
- Place
- Campos do Jordão
More collaborations
A selection from more than 50 brands, from carmakers to fashion labels.
06World
A signature
that travels
Miami and Austin became a second home. Europe came through fairs, group shows and collectors.
-
São PauloBR
Palácio dos Bandeirantes collection, International Graffiti Biennial, Galeria Alma da Rua, HUM Galeria and the Pinacoteca de Botucatu upstate.
1998—
-
MiamiUS
Consulate General of Brazil collection, Art Week at Casa Brasil, Casa Rede Ronaldo during the 2026 World Cup and his first show abroad, in 2016.
2016—
-
AustinUS
Three SXSW editions at SP House and an art-and-science project with the University of Texas.
2024—
- BerlinDE Group show at Hotel Das Stue. Earlier, in 2019, a live panel at Hookah Fair in Frankfurt. 2022
- SevilleES Live panel at Shisha Messe. 2019
- BelgiumBE Works in private collections through a partnership between Cour des Arts and Galeria Alma da Rua. 2026
07Journey
A timeline in spray paint
From comics traced in São Mateus to the Governor Award: the chapters that shaped the artist.
-
1998
The first spray can
Born in 1983 and raised in São Mateus, on São Paulo’s East Side, he discovers graffiti at 15 — after a childhood tracing comics and gaming magazines on wax paper.
-
2013
Pixel Show, Honda and Livraria Cultura
First big stages: live graffiti at the Salão Duas Rodas motorcycle show and Pixel Show, and an exhibition at Livraria Cultura.
-
2016
First international show
ArtWalk at San Paul Gallery in Miami, after a stint in the United States honing his technique.
-
2019
Spain and Germany
Live panels at Shisha Messe in Seville and Hookah Fair in Frankfurt.
-
2022
Graffiti Biennial and Berlin
The “O que sobrou?” panel at the 5th International Graffiti Biennial at Memorial da América Latina, and a group show at Hotel Das Stue in Berlin.
-
2024
Two solo shows and the Palácio collection
OCULTO and O Sagrado in São Paulo. His work Cotidiano joins the Palácio dos Bandeirantes collection. First SP House at SXSW.
-
2025
A Casa and Miami Art Week
A solo show at the Pinacoteca de Botucatu, live painting at Casa Brasil during Miami Art Week and works delivered to the Consulate General of Brazil.
-
2026
Shortlisted for the Governor Award
The Nissan Kicks Art Car, a third SP House at SXSW and 39 days painting Casa Rede Ronaldo during the World Cup in Miami.
09Invitation
Got a wall
waiting?
Murals, commissioned canvases, art cars, customization, live activations and workshops for brands, spaces and collectors.