Art aficionados, young and old, poured into the Tishman Auditorium at the New School on September 11 to attend a talk entitled “Square Pegs, Round Holes: From the White Cube to Public Sphere,” and led by Iran do Espiríto Santo, one of Brazil’s most successful contemporary visual artists. The event was part of the ongoing Public Art Fund Talks series at the New School, which features artists whose works have traversed into public spaces.

Espiríto Santo talked about a variety of his works from 1991 to 2003, which includes sculptural installations made from glass, stone, or marble that emulate everyday objects, and intricate wall paintings that create a unique perceptual experience.

“I try to exemplify the transition between showing in the white cube neutral space of galleries and museums to the vernacular architecture and the public spaces,” said Espirito Santo during his presentation.

One of his most striking in-door installations, a wall painting entitled “Recuo,” was presented earlier this year in the small brazilian chapel of Capela do Morumbi in São Paulo, which was built in the 1800s and is now used as an exhibition space. The wall painting, reminiscent of a vortex, consists of 54 strips of grey from light to dark that creates an illusion of three-dimensionality and depth.

Esperito Santo told the audience that he uses approximately 50 shades of grey in various other pieces.

“It has nothing to do with the book,” he said with a laugh. “This was very unfortunate. I wanted to kill myself when it came out.”

Judging by the audience’s reaction, they seemed to find it rather humorous as well.

Espiríto Santo’s first public installation in the U.S., a sculpture titled “Playground,” was recently inaugurated at the Doris C. Freedman Plaza in Central Park. The sculpture is a play on oversized building blocks, which creates an illusory and participatory experience for the viewer.

The Public Art Fund will be hosting two more events in their fall 2013 series. Artist Mark Manders from the Netherlands will talk about his work on Oct 2, and the collaborative Puerto Rican art duo Allora & Calzadilla will give a talk on November 13.