Page 137 - ARTE!Brasileiros #37

truth is that when the artist produced collages of men with the day. The ambitions of contemporary art, as pointed
erected penises he was far from seeking anything that may out by the philosopher Arthur Danto, are no longer
be considered morally acceptable. aesthetic - what matters is the immediate contact with people.
The radical nature and the importance of Hudinilson lies in Looking at the panorama of this 32 edition featuring 450
nd
the fact that he did not seek to convey any kind of uplifting works from 70 countries, we found that most of them discuss
message, but create a striking and refined work that ecology, natural resources, cosmology and anthropology. There
stemmed from his own choices. is nothing wrong with the concepts. However, the works that are
Throughout the book Resende insists on that complacency, on display are incompatible with the immense effort to set up
which would be acceptable in an informal conversation an event as large as the Biennial. For ten editions the São Paulo
among friends, but unacceptable when it comes to Biennial has faced challenges related to its exhibition space. In
offering a thorough understanding of the artist’s career. previous decades, the imposing architecture of Oscar Niemeyer
In the absence of the artist’s own account of his career, was “domesticated” by the works on display and the expographic
the reader is left with the generous and compromising projects attempted to prevent that the works were overshadowed
testimony of a curating friend. As stated by André Gide, by the lines of Niemeyer. Currently, the curves that consolidated
“good intentions make bad literature.” the architect gloom over the fragility of the art works on display.
Unlike Biennials such as the ones in Venice, Lyon, Havana and
1 | POSIÇÃO AMOROSA – HUDINILSON JR. (464 PAGES) PUBLISHER: MARTINS FONTES. Istanbul - whose projects have remained open to the unknown
AUTHOR: RICARDO RESENDE and to new concepts, while seeking to balance new, provocative,
groundbreaking, collective, artisanal art with complex works
2 | PINTO NÃO PODE, (1981) by established artists - the São Paulo Biennial settles with
“experimental” art, which is not always innovative.
3 | SEM TÍTULO (1976) The greatest moment of the São Paulo Biennial was in 1981.
The event had reached its 16th edition under the curatorship
REVIEW BIENNIAL | PAGE 112 of critic and historian Walter Zanini, who eliminated national
LIFE’S UNCERTAIN FOR BRAZIL’S MOST representations and organised the art works in the show by
analogies between art forms and not by country. At the time,
REPUTABLE CULTURAL INSTITUTION Zanini called museum directors and curators to discuss this new
format. As a journalist, I closely followed the meeting during
which we mourned the death of one of the members of the
ND
32 SÃO PAULO ART BIENNIAL committee: Luis Carlucho, then director of the Venice Biennale.
It’s surprising that the press has erroneously reported that the
BY LEONOR AMARANTE classification of art works by country in the Biennial ended in
2006, in the 27th Biennial, which was curated by Lisette Lagnado.
nd
LIVE UNCERTAINTY? The title of the 32 Biennial couldn’t be This false information may have been obtained from the Biennial
more fitting. For the last ten years, the Biennial Foundation has website. It is interesting that the same Biennial website informs
provided indications that some “live uncertainty” has surrounded that this change happened in the Biennial’s 16th edition, under the
the most traditional, well-known and reputable cultural events curatorship of Zanini. It is unfortunate that such misinformation
in Brazil. We are not trying to form an opinion about the latest is found on the official Biennial website, and that it continues
editions of the event based on memories. This is not about recalling to disseminate to the international public.
that art event event that used to present the public with large Back to the 32 edition, among its positive points, we applaud
nd
scale art works of great impact, able to leverage an entire edition. the catalog texts by Julia Rebolledo. They are objective, direct,
This is not about defending lineups that shine with the presence of hones and reinforce the challenge of achieving a balance between
stars as Richard Serra, Pipilott Rist, Joseph Beuys, Anish Kapoor concept and form in art. Some works will be remembered,
and Gerhard Richter, who have attended the Biennial before. As including the video installation A Minute Ago, by American
noted by art critic Rosalind Krauss, art fields have been expanding artist Rachel Rose, a translucent game between architect Phillip
for a while now, increasingly dissolving the boundaries between Johnson, designer of the Crystal House and a storm on the
different forms of art, announcing the collapse of the concept of beach, and Ágora: OcaTaperaTerreiro, an “anthropological
nd
autonomy in art, called “modern formalism”. The 32 São Paulo installation” by Bené Fonteles whose concept discusses
Biennial, curated by Jochen Volz, explores the use of natural the core of all Brazilian cultures. Fonteles’ work is the result
materials in art, encouraging artists who have not yet realised of his interaction with indigenous peoples.
how much creative freedom they have in their hands and hesitate Philosopher Zygmunt Bauman says that the shapeless fluidic
to break free from established routines and subvert traditions. Is and rapid changes occurring in contemporary society have
that good or bad? Frans Kracjberg way of depicting exuberance resulted in what he calls liquid modernity. “The idea is to adapt
in nature is much simpler. His sophistication and magnitude of to situations, like water, according to the container in which
shapes seem to overwhelm the eye of the viewer. The decline of it is inserted.” This “green” Biennial has taken place in the
the Biennial coincides with the economic crisis in Brazil. However, same building since 1959 and this year, it tries to adapt to the
ideally, the Biennial Foundation should reflect on its next steps so immateriality of the new era. It invokes shamanic entities, focuses
that the authenticity of the event can be preserved. on man and nature, discusses biological questions. French Pierre
That’s fine. Now times have changed. There was a time when the Huyghe, for example, displays the video De-Extinction showing
stock market overflowed with money, banks heavily attended microscopic images of insects and a room with four thousand
the Biennial Foundation ready to sponsor the biennial with their flies. They follow the visitors and form a cloud over their heads.
automatic teller machines. This is a different time. Money is short As the flies of Huygue, a “live uncertainty” surrounds
now. However, it seems that powerful artworks no longer fill the us in these dark times of dubious character of politics,
eye of the art system. Sharing is the new trend. Revisiting old fragile economy and hazy horizon - as the quality of the art
concepts and discussing current issues is becoming the order of production and next editions of the São Paulo Biennial.

INGLES_205X275_New_Ed 37 2.indd 23 11/21/16 8:46 PM