Vik Muniz

Vik Muniz is an artist and photographer born in São Paulo, Brazil, on December 20, 1961. He is known for using unusual materials in his art, such as chocolate syrup, sugar, dirt, and garbage. He began his career in Brazil, moved to the United States in 1984, and has lived in New York since 1986. He participated in the São Paulo Biennial in 1998 and represented Brazil at the Venice Biennale in 2001. The 2010 documentary "Waste Land" (Lixo Extraordinário) focuses on Muniz's project with the waste pickers at the Jardim Gramacho landfill in Rio de Janeiro and won an award at the Sundance Film Festival.