1. Historical

Tasso, born in Brazil, city of Franca, São Paulo State, on February 14^th, 1936, where he lives and has his atelier and permanent exposition. Grandson of Italian immigrants, naturalized Italian later.

Plastic Artist (Painter), teacher, used to sign Hélio Tasso and nowadays he signs TASSO. Since he was a child he showed aptitude to draw and paint. He went to a professional school and graduated in technical design. He is a self-taught person. He studied going to museums, galleries and libraries, creating his own style.

It can be said that in the year of 1953 he began to dedicate as a professional in the art of painting and drawing creating stylized designs for models of shoes and boxes in the shoes industries in Franca. In the following years he started to give up more and more with the industrial designs, and he dedicated more and more in the art of oil painting over painting aquarelle, etc. In 1975, it had beginning in his carrier several individual and collective expositions getting medals and awards. Keeping up with the same style, Realism and Psychosoart (Fantastic Realism) always.

2. Expositions and Prizes

1975 to 1976 – Six individual expositions, two of them in Franca (SP) and one in Uberaba (MG) – Sponsored by the Cultural and Educational Department of both cities, e other ones in industries and stores.

1977 – Chosen as Artistic Personality of Franca (SP), relating to the year of 1976.

1977 to 1980 – Several individual expositions.

1980 – INTERAMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF PRESS – great gold medal with the work: Portrait (Realism) and Anguish (Psychosoart – Fantastic Realism) and several individual expositions.

1981 – III BARRETENSE ROOM OF ARTS – Gold medal with the work: Picture of my father (Realism).

1981 – 45^th PAULISTA ROOM OF GREAT ARTS – silver medal with the work: Self-portrait (Realism) and several individual expositions.

1982 – I ART ROOM ROSA CRUZ ORDER CHAPTER AMORC accomplished in Franca (SP) – great medal – 1^st place in profane: Portrait (Realism) and several individual expositions.

1983 – SANTOS DUMONT ROOM – SBBA PROMOTION – SANTOS DUMONT FOUNDATION – MILITARY CIRCLE OF SÃO PAULO – great gold medal in contemporary art with the work: Inconstancy (Psychosoart – Fantastic Realism) and several individual expositions.

1984 – One of the founders of the OFFICIAL FOUNDATION OF THE APRIL ROOM OF FRANCA (SP), and participation in the foundation of the Paulista Academy of São Paulo.

1984 – CRECILIANO DA SILVA ROOM – BAHIA – gold medal with the work: Portrait (Realism).

1984 to 1998 – Several individual expositions and jury member in rooms of the capital and other cities of Brazil.

1986 – Brazil and Extreme Orient International Pallet Great Award, Cultural New Age and Art Center; support of the Municipal Secretariat of São Paulo with the work: Self Portrait (Realism) and Poem (Psychosoart – Fantastic Realism).

1987 – Fourth Room of Plastic Art of Casa Branca, São Paulo - great gold medal with the work: Poetry (Psychosoart – Fantastic Realism).

1988 – III INTERNATIONAL ROOM: SÃO PAULO – great gold medal with the work: Equilibrium (Psychosoart – Fantastic realism).

1988 – Central America Trip Great Prize Trophy with the work: Conscience weightiness (Psychosoart – Fantastic Realism) and several individual expositions.

1989 – Jury member of Plastic Art in several rooms, emphasizing the Historical Institute of Arceburgo (MG) which received homage of I.H.C.A. of its 1^st centenary.

1975 to 1999 – There are numberless prizes, individual and collective expositions, jury member in several rooms of the cities and capitals of Brazil, honor guest in official collective expositions.

3. Art Critical Alberto Beuttenmuller and Antônio Sartori Junior.

Alberto Beuttenmuller critical of ABCA – APCA, by occasion of the individual exposition accomplished by the Cultural and Educational Department of the Mário de Andrade Foundation – Franca (SP), on 15/08/1986.

"Every Great Artist is a creator of signs, notably working with symbols close to reality. The sign is composed by significant (visual image), but also unconscious image, whereby express desire; and meaning (mental image) or objective representation of the thing. Hélio Tasso has a proper grammar: flowers, knives, butterflies, snakes, eggs, horses, violins, etc., that are images of the unconscious, consequently objects and individuals that symbolize more than represent, offering us many diverse meanings. Violin symbolizes music; nest, desire of safety; horse, freedom; butterfly, sensibility that dream. It never can be seen his work as real representation, but the imaginary. For this it is all fantastic, dreamer and humane. Hélio Tasso learned to paint with the life. That’s why poisonous reptiles (the evil) always menace his steps (freedom and dream) while in his nests set butterflies. The poetry and language of Hélio Tasso, sometimes lyric, sometimes dramatic."

Antônio Sartori Junior – critical of ABCA-APCA, by the occasion of his visit to Tasso’s atelier on 23/10/1990:

"In the elapse of the plastic development of the painter Hélio Tasso, thematic boarding is presented like: Landscape, Dead Nature, Portrait and Realism Fantastic".

"With the spontaneous Realism, Tasso, tries to document his exterior world, when he sees he reveals or instigate his inside world of artist"

" See Tasso’s painting, is search in the details a meaning to explore his inside world".

"Art is vehicle for a communication, because through it the artist manifests himself in several ways of expression, like music, plastic, literature, theatre, etc., and finally, for an achievement, because in it the artist signs or registers its necessity of expression. So if the artist sees, forebodes or imagines his exterior world, documents, instigates or reveals his inside world, with spontaneous realism and a subjectivism that rises when wanders in this impenetrable world of abrupt gaps that occur with him in each moment. So we have to notice the work of Hélio Tasso, since his art is vehicle and purpose to register or instigate his imagination or his inside world of artist; of which achievement occurs through an academic plastic language to document and reveal his Realism and Fantastic Realism that he proposes".

HOMENAGENS NO FINAL DO SÉCULO 20: Pela prefeitura municipal de Franca (TROFÉU 500 ANOS) nas comemorações do Brasil 500 anos, àqueles que fizeram a história da cidade de Franca.
Noite EP (ELEGANTES & PERSONALIDADES) em destaque aos que fizeram a história da cidade de Franca.

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