Opening on December 12, the Palácio das Artes and the Centro de Arte Contemporânea e Fotografia in Belo Horizonte are hosting the exhibition Do Objeto para o Mundo – Coleção Inhotim [From the Object to the World – The Inhotim Collection]. This traveling show marks the first time that a part of Instituto Inhotim’s collection has left the institute’s facilities in Brumadinho (MG). Featuring over 50 artworks , which date from the 1950s up to the present day, the exhibition is composed of a cross-section of the collection. and examines the field of contemporary art, in the light of the institution’s collection and programs, which first opened to the general public in 2006. Co-produced by Fundação Clóvis Salgado, the show will run until March 8, 2015, after which it will travel onward to São Paulo, opening at Itaú Cultural in April 2015. It will be free to enter at all touring venues.

The exhibition focuses on a historical moment when art expanded beyond objects to become more open to the world. In this context, elements from daily life, from real space, from politics and the body are incorporated into art and the spectator becomes a participant. For Rodrigo Moura – Inhotim’s director of art and cultural programs, and the curator of the exhibition – this is an opportunity for audiences to get to know the institute’s collection, as most of the artworks have never been shown at the park. “They are works that point out possible paths in the history of art over the last 50 years, which have allowed Inhotim to be what it is,” he explains.

The president of Fundação Clóvis Salgado, Fernanda Machado, draws attention to the importance of the circulation of Inhotim’s collection. “We are very happy to be displaying this rich collection for the first time. We understand that it involves a bold project that aims to offer the public a glimpse at a wide variety of previously unseen artworks. We believe that this partnership allows us to enlarge the mission of Fundação Clóvis Salgado and to further expand access to culture to our audiences.”

An exhibition path in four segments

In the main gallery of the Palácio das Artes, historical works are placed in dialogue with more recent ones. Organized in four segments, the exhibition path begins with the neoconcretism of Hélio Oiticica, Lygia Clark and Lygia Pape, passes through the conceptual geometry of Channa Horwitz, Cildo Meireles and David Lamelas as well as through the avant-garde works of the Gutai group, which arose in Japan during years immediately following the second World War, and ends with action art and the presence of the body in art, exemplified by the work of Chris Burden, among others and are presented in dialogue with artists such as Gabriel Sierra, Jac Leirner, Cinthia Marcelle, and others.

The galleries on the lower level feature smaller-scale installations by Ernesto Neto, Jorge Macchi,Mauro Restiffe, Melanie Smith, Rivane Neuenschwander and Thomas Hirschhorn. At the Centro de Arte Contemporânea e Fotografia, a historical building in the city’s downtown region, the video installation Homo sapiens sapiens (2005) by Pipilotti Rist, will be shown for the first time in Brazil. Filmed at Inhotim before the park was opened to the general public, the work explores the institute’s garden and creates an immersive environment that encourages the visitor to lie back and absorb the images projected on the ceiling.

From the Body to the Earth

The exhibition’s title also refers to the event Do Corpo à Terra [From the Body to the Earth], which took place during the inauguration of the Palácio das Artes, in April 1970. Organized by critic Frederico Morais, today it is considered a milestone in the investigations concerning the environmental and experimentalist art of the avant-garde movement in Brazil. Two productions made on that occasion are part of the show: Ação no Parque Municipal [Action at the Municipal Park] 1970, by Décio Noviello, and Situação T/T 1 – Belo Horizonte [Situation T/T 1 – Belo Horizonte], 1970, by Artur Barrio.

OPENING TALKS

The first days of the exhibition will feature special programming, with talks between artists and curators.

– December 12 (Friday), at 7:30 p.m. – Palácio das Artes – Sala Juvenal Dias

The artists David Lamelas and Jorge Macchi will answer questions from curators Rodrigo Moura and Inês Grosso.

Seating capacity: 170 people. Free admission, by order of arrival.

Simultaneous Spanish-Portuguese translation.

– December 13 (Saturday), at 2:30 p.m. – Palácio das Artes – Sala Juvenal Dias

Cildo Meireles, Décio Noviello and Frederico Morais participate in a conversation mediated by curator Júlia Rebouças.

Seating capacity: 170 people. Free admission, by order of arrival.

EXHIBITION

Do Objeto para o Mundo – Coleção Inhotim

Where: Palácio das Artes (Av. Afonso Pena, 1.537, Centro, Belo Horizonte/MG) and Centro de Arte Contemporânea e Fotografia (Av. Afonso Pena, 737, Centro, Belo Horizonte/MG).

When: from December 12, 2014, to March 8, 2015. Tuesday through Saturday, from 9:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays, from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Visits program: during the week, the Educational Program in Visual Arts of FCS will provide guided visits to both walk-in and pre-booked visitors. Groups of six people and larger require prior scheduling by phone: (+55 31) 3236-7471 or email: agendamento.educativo@fcs.mg.gov.br.

– On Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, the educators propose a thematic path that further investigates the work ofartists featured in the exhibition. Starting times: Saturdays, at 10:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. Sundays, at 4:30 p.m.

The exhibition Do Objeto para o Mundo – Coleção Inhotim [From the Object to the World – The Inhotim Collection] is é realizada pelo Ministério da Cultura, tem apresentação do Inhotim e Itaú e correalização da Fundação Clóvis Salgado.