Page 136 - ARTE!Brasileiros #37

ART VERSUS IGNORANCE ENGLISH VERSION

public with a Walkman playing an excerpt of Thannhäuser 1 | THE ARTIST IN HIS STUDIO
by Richard Wagner (1813-1883), which granted a solemn
atmosphere to the visit. 2 | VIEW FROM THE INSTALLATION ELETRO ESFERO ESPAÇO (1986-2015), GUTO LACAZ
Eletro, Esfera, Espaço was a success among critics and the
public: the installation had permanent lines in the show at the REVIEW BOOK | PAGES 110 AND 111
Biennial and curator Aracy Amaral selected it to the exhibition
Modernidade - Arte Brasileira no Século 20 (Modernity – THE ARTIST’S VOICE IS NOT PRESENT
Brazilian Art in the 20 Century), in Paris, in 1988, a show
th
also presented at MAM - Museum of Modern Art of São Paulo, POSIÇÃO AMOROSA – HUDINILSON JR. IS AN VAST AND SUPERFICIAL
in the same year. “I arrived in France imagining that I would ANALYSIS OF THE ARTIST’S CAREER
conquer the world, but there wasn’t a single line about my
work on the papers”, he said, remembering the frustration. BY FABIO CYPRIANO
After Modernidade, the installation was never seen by the
public again, a fact that reveals the remarkable research POSIÇÃO AMOROSA - HUDINILSON JR. written by
carried out by Pinacoteca’s curation team, since not even the Ricardo Resende and organised by Roberta Marinho aims
gallery that represents Lacaz had the set. “I am an abandoned to present the work of Hudinilson, who recently passed
adult”, he said with irony. without having achieved much visibility.
But, despite the sarcastic remark, he points out that his Some artists, like Hudinilson Jr. (1957-2013), are marginal to
work has never been known through lobbying. In fact, the art market for complex reasons and not always due to
it’s been like that since the beginning. Lacaz studied at their incompatibility with the rules of the art world. His passing
Faculdade de Arquitetura e Urbanismo, in São José dos might represent the end of the debate around his work.
Campos, state of São Paulo. He graduated in 1974 and In this sense, Posição Amorosa (Martins Fontes, 464 pages,
was part of the only class formed by the experimental R$ 75) is important for presenting a thorough overview
institution, which went through a hard time during the of his work - virtually all the artist’s series are generously
dictatorship. He worked with architecture until 1978, when reproduced in the publication, totalling over one hundred
he was fired in the midst of one the crises that the country images. In addition to featuring many of the artist’s works,
experienced at the period. the book includes a photo essay by VitorButkus. The
Guto Lacaz had no training in the Arts, but created little photographs were taken in the loft-studio where Hudinilson
gadgets. He showed his work to his cousin Raquel Arnaud, lived, revealing some details of his daily routine, an
who explained to him: “You’re making objects”. He decided important element that contributes to the understanding
then to send 14 of them to Primeira Mostra do Móvel e do of his work, as Resende states throughout the publication.
Objeto Inusitado (1st Unusual Furniture and Objects Show), Hudinilson is a key role player of the transgressive
at Paço das Artes, at the time running at Museum of Image activities in the São Paulo scene of the 1970s and 1980s,
and Sound - a partnershio that has happened again this actively taking part of the graphite scene in the city and
year – and among his works was Crushfixo, a soda bottle public interventions - through his participation in the
fixed on a box. Artistic Group 3NÓS3, created with Mario Ramiro and
“I was awarded with a prize and, also, my works illustrated Rafael France. He also takes part in the experimental
an article of several pages at Veja magazine”, said Lacaz, actions promoted by the Museum of Contemporary
recalling a time when the publication was highly respected. Art of USP under the directorship of WaltezZanini,
Therefore, Lacaz, at 27, was compared to Duchamp, without when the institution experimented with mail art
having “any idea who he was”. He decided it was time to study and new technologies such as xerox machines.
Art, even though he “never thought of being an artist”. He His participation in these activities is enough to give him
started at Dudi Maia Rosa’s atelier, with whom he had classes a place in Brazil’s recent art history. However, in 1990 his
in the company of Carlos Fajardo and Luiz Paulo Baravelli, collaboration with art institutions begins to cease and the
among others. book lacks information that might fill in this gap. Although
His performances began in 1982, when Ivaldo Granato invited Hudinilson continued to create, mainly works in collage,
Lacaz along other 59 artists to perform an action of one these pieces do not have the same visibility of his other
minute each at Centro Cultural São Paulo. “I used a record artistic activities. Between 1990 and 2001, for example,
player, my first household appliance. It was amazing to be Hudinilson did not have any solo exhibition.
on stage, with goose bumps and adrenaline pumping.” Since The book lacks the artist’s own account of this period,
then, he never stopped. His most recent action was scheduled which might have given the reader a better understanding
for the end of October, at the gallery Olido, in downtown São of his career. In many instances, the author explains the
Paulo. Ludo-voo is a performance of 20 scenes with flying many failed attempts to interview the artist, as well as the
objects, one of the artist’s obsessions. incident of loosing hours of recorded conversation due
However, despite the fact that he had presented his works in to technical problems. The author tries to compensate
several important galleries of the city, such as Subdistrito, the gaps created by the setbacks faced during the
São Paulo, Luisa Strina and Marília Razuk, and also that he writing of the book with obvious contextualisations
had been awarded with a Guggenheim Scholarship in 1989, (especially in a chapter dedicated to the 1970s),
Lacaz survived mostly due to his graphic design jobs. mythification of the artist and themes of his works.
“I never sold a whole exhibition. I always come home with “He shows that there is beauty between two men having
almost everything. The return in fine arts is too slow. Imagine sex. Just put aside prejudice and religious orientations”,
that I’m seeing my first installation now, almost 30 years after it is with comments as these that the author, to a certain
it was built”, he said. “I have three ready exhibitions just here extent, trivialises the artist’s work. After all, saying that
on the top floor of the house, but I’m gonna wait for the wind the artist was concerned with showing beauty through his
to blow and when the time comes, it will be.” works is like saying he sought to trade art for merit. The

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