Gauntlet Gallery — Complete Vhils Print Index
Sever 01
Summary
Sever 01 (2022) is a two-colour screenprint on plexiglass mounted over advertising posters collected from the streets, laid on wood, at 70 x 100 cm. Signed and numbered in an edition of 50, each example is unique: the salvaged street posters vary in colour and composition, so no two assemblages are alike.
Why It Matters
This work embeds actual urban ephemera, layered advertising posters torn from city walls, beneath a screenprinted plexiglass surface. It is Vhils working directly with found material culture, the same billboard-and-poster strata he excavates in his mural work. The variation from piece to piece makes each a genuine one-off rather than a uniform multiple.
Collector Perspective
Despite the edition of 50, the use of unique salvaged posters means every Sever 01 differs, blurring the line between edition and original. The plexiglass-on-wood construction is an object requiring careful hanging. Collectors drawn to authenticity of materials, actual street-collected posters, will value the direct link to Vhils's source environment and the assemblage's mixed-media depth.
Historical Context
Décollage, the art of layered and torn poster fragments, has roots in the mid-20th-century Nouveau Réalisme movement of artists like Jacques Villeglé. Vhils extends that lineage by combining collected advertising with screenprint on plexiglass, reflecting his career-long fascination with the accumulated visual noise of the urban surface as both subject and material.
FAQ
Why is each Sever 01 unique?
Each incorporates different advertising posters collected from the streets, so colour and composition vary across the edition of 50.
What is the construction?
A two-colour screenprint on plexiglass over street-collected posters, mounted on wood, at 70 x 100 cm.
How does it relate to décollage?
It draws on the layered, torn-poster tradition of mid-century Nouveau Réalisme, using real urban ephemera as material.
Is it a standard print?
No; it is a mixed-media assemblage, making each example effectively a one-off.
About the Artist
Vhils is the working name of Alexandre Farto, a Portuguese visual artist born in 1987 near Lisbon. He is internationally recognized for a pioneering "carving" technique in which he excavates portraits from layered walls, billboards, and surfaces using chisels, drills, and controlled explosives, effectively creating images by removing material rather than adding it. His large-scale murals appear in cities across the globe, and his studio editions translate this bas-relief, destructive-creation aesthetic into prints, laser-cut works, and mixed-media pieces. Vhils has exhibited widely and collaborated on major public and institutional projects.
Collecting Vhils at Gauntlet Gallery
What Vhils works can I collect?
Beyond his walls, Vhils produces signed, numbered studio editions including screenprints, hand-carved paper, laser-cut metal, and mixed-media relief works. Editions that preserve his signature carving texture are especially sought after. Gauntlet Gallery favors pieces in excellent condition with intact surfaces and complete documentation.
How is a Vhils piece authenticated?
We sell Vhils works with documented studio provenance, supported by the edition's signature and numbering. Each piece is photographed exactly as it will ship, including signature, edition number, and any embossing or studio marks, so details are verifiable up front.
What drives value?
Medium and technique (unique carved and relief works over flat prints), edition size, scale, condition, and documented provenance all shape price. Hand-worked, textural, and one-of-a-kind pieces carry the highest premiums.