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Reading time 8 min

Space, Work and History Seminar

Redação Inhotim

Discuss contemporary issues and their connection to Inhotim’s universe.  This is the proposal of the Space, Work and History Seminar, help by Inhotim Escola on May 23 and 24, in Belo Horizonte.  During the event, three panels will gather artists, thinkers and three important names in the Institute’s collection:  Adriana Varejão, Marilá Dardot and Marcius Galan.

 

“Our idea is to promote a creative space to discuss some issues that seem to be key in contemporary art as well as in the work carried out at Inhotim, which are also important for our time in general.  The focus of the seminar is not academic or strictly theoretical. We intend to bring subjective, sensitive approaches, together with criticism based on the work and actions of each one”, explain curator Júlia Rebouças, in charge of the program.

 

Each panel will be composed of three guests: one theorist, one artist whose work is present in the Institute’s collection and one artist of a different discipline. Curator Júlia Rebouças and Inhotim’s art and cultural program director Rodrigo Moura will mediate the discussions.  The event will follow the Nature, Time and Poetry seminar held in the launching of Inhotim Escola in 2013. Check out the detailed program:

 

Space Panel

May 23, 7:30 PM

Mediator: Júlia Rebouças

Guests:

Marcius Galan is majored in Art Education at FAAP and took part in residence programs at Cité des Arts, in Paris, and at the Art Institute of Chicago. He won the 2012 PIPA award, which took him to the Gasworks Residence Program.  Two of his works are on display at Inhotim:  Seção Diagonal (2008) and Imóvel/Instável (2011), which establish dialogs about sculpture, illusion and space perception.

Seção Diagonal
“Seção Diagonal” (2008), by Marcius Galan, in exhibition at Galeria Mata. Photo: Pedro Motta

Fernando de Mello Franco is a professor and took his Ph.D. in Architecture at USP (Universidade de São Paulo).  He was part of the curators committee responsible for Rotterdam and Venice biennials and is currently the Secretary of Human Development for the municipality of São Paulo. In this panel, he will talk about the city as an urban space and its challenges.

 

Grace Passô is an actress, director and playwright. In 2004, she was one of the founders of Grupo Espanca!, from the state of Minas Gerais. She currently directs the play “O Contrato”, with Grupo 3’s actresses Yara de Novaes and Débora Falabellla. In the  Seminar, Grace will talk about the body in relation to space and its place on stage.

 

Work Panel

May 24, 10:30 AM

Mediator: Rodrigo Moura

Guests:

Marilá Dardot was born in the state of Minas Gerais, in Belo Horizonte.  She is majored in Social Communications at UFMG, and took her M.A. in Visual Languages at the UFRJ School of Fine Arts.  A Origem da Obra de Arte (2002), permanently on display at Inhotim, proposes a reflection on the construction of works of art. At Inhotim Escola, the artist addresses these and other issues related to her work, such as techniques and tools used to create it.

"A Origem da Obra de Arte" (2002), de Marilá Dardot. Foto: Pedro Motta
“A Origem da Obra de Arte” (2002), by Marilá Dardot. Photo: Pedro Motta

Peter Pál Pelbart is a philosopher, essayist and professor.  He was born in Budapest, Hungary, but lives in São Paulo, where he coordinates Companhia Teatral Ueinzz, formed by psychiatric patients from A Casa, a partial hospitalization facility.  Interested in studying the work of Gilles Deleuze, he helps discuss work’s role in society.

 

Francisco Alvim is a poet and diplomat. Influenced by his sister, poet Maria Ângela Alvim, he stated writing when he was still a teenager. Sol dos Cegos, his first book, was released in 1968. After spending some time in Paris working for Unesco, Alvim returned to Brazil and joined the Frenesi literary group, which was active in mimeographed poetry in the 1970. In this event, he will talk about the work of a writer and the craft of writing.

 

History Panel

May 24, 2:30 PM

Mediator: Júlia Rebouças

Guests:

Adriana Varejão was born in Rio de Janeiro and chose painting as the main support for her production.  Her first exhibit was in 1988 at Galeria Thomas Cohn, in Rio de Janeiro.  In her works on display at Inhotim, you can track the diversity of interests in her work and the array of sources of research.  Through painting, sculptures and installations, the artist has discussed Brazilian history and, above all, how the Brazilian people was forged.

"Celacanto Provoca Maremoto" (2004-2008), de Adriana Varejão. Foto: Ricardo Mallaco
“Celacanto Provoca Maremoto” (2004-2008), by Adriana Varejão. Photo: Ricardo Mallaco

Norma Côrtes is a historian majored at PUC Rio, with a post-doctorate in Culture History by USP.  She is a professor at UFRJ and works with Social and Cultural History, investigating, among others, the way historical phenomena are comprehended.  In this panel, she will help establish the counterpoint between hegemonic and marginalized narratives of past happenings.  

 

Eduardo Moreira was born in Rio de Janeiro and moved to Belo Horizonte at age 13.  Playwright and founder of Grupo Galpão, he has also taken part in all of the group’s plays as an actor.  In cinema, he has acted in national productions such as O ano que meus Pais saíram de férias (2006) and  Bastismo de Sangue (2007). At Inhotim Escola, he talks about history as a “story” and its fictional narratives.

 

 Plan Ahead!

Inhotim School presents the Seminary Space, Work and History.

Date and time: May 23, panel at 7:30 PM; May 24, panels at 10:30 AM and 2:30 PM

Location:  Museu Histórico Abílio Barreto Auditorium – Avenida Prudente de Morais, 202 – Cidade Jardim

Admission Fee:  Free, by order of arrival. Capacity: 100 seats.

 Update: The panel “History”, that was supposed to happen on 24th in the afternoon has been canceled and will be rescheduled soon. 

Reading time 3 min

2014 Contemporary Music Series

Fernando Rocha

In the 1980s, Belo Horizonte was one of the most important contemporary music hubs in Brazil.  Several events, always very popular with the public, were held by Fundação de Educação Artística at Palácio das Artes This faded as time went by, but I´ve always believed that era could be revived.  

 

In 2009, I started a contemporary music group named Somente 21 in Belo Horizonte. We made several performances in the city and I ended up getting to know Rodrigo Moura, Inhotim’s curator.  From then on, we have developed the Contemporary Music Series, an event aimed at rescuing that movement that happened in the 80s, in complete harmony with the Institute’s proposal.  

 

Contemporary music is closely related to experimentation.  It comes from the tradition of concerts, of the classic, but it is based on the search for new languages.  It is a process whose pure concept involves the investigation of tones and sounds. Everything which produces a sound can be used to make music.  And the possibility to take all this to Inhotim is very interesting, since it is a space for innovation, reflection and transformation.

 

Since the first series in 2012 up to today, there have been eight concerts, which featured the work of composers who are essential to contemporary music.  The Contemporary Music Series has gown this year, with four concerts, several musicians from Minas Gerais and also from other countries and intense interaction to improvise and create new pieces or instruments.  

 

The program starts on Sunday, April 13, with a performance by pianist Xenia Pestova.  Shadow Piano, her first solo album recently launched in Europe, brings pieces played in toy pianos, which create a playful atmosphere rocked by the metallic sound typical of this instrument.  The event takes place at Teatro de Arena at Inhotim, at 1 PM.  

 

The year of 2014 will be filled with experimentation, diverse sounds and great music.

Reading time 7 min

Contemporary dance at Inhotim

Redação Inhotim

Thinking about women and how they relate with space, French choreographer and dancer Cecile Proust developed the femmeuseposturalE show. Relying on a group of multigenerational professional and amateur dancers coming from different backgrounds, the performances use contemporary dance to explore issues such as the construction of the female genre. Visiting Minas Gerais for the third time, Cecile is currently making the final adjustments in the performances that will take place this week at Inhotim, on March 14 and 15. Between rehearsals in the Institute’s gardens, the choreographer took a break to talk to Blog do Inhotim. Comfortably sitting in one of the benches by Hugo França, she talked about performing at the park, as well as about her view on women in today’s society, her influences and much more.  Read everything in the interview that follows.

 

Blog do Inhotim – How did the idea for this show come about?

Cecile Proust – From the beginning, the Femmeuse evokes the question of gender, feminism, art and the connections that can be made between these points. The performances presented in femmeuseposturalE are a female answer to the work of French choreographer Fabrice Ramalingom, Postural: études, created for a group of 15 men. We made this work with choreographies presented only by women. In this work, we can find influences of Odile Duboc [French director] and American director Bob Wilson, with whom I have worked before. There are several other influences, but Brazilian painter and sculptor Lygia Clark has also brought a lot of references.

 

BI – What is your view on women in today’s society and which message does the show wish to convey in regard to women?

CP – It is hard to define the woman in today’s society with accuracy, for there are millions of them and they are all different from one another. I believe we should all just leave the word and space free for them. Each woman should be able to express herself in the several different ways she can. Therefore, we should leave this space open and let the invisible emerge within women. This is precisely what the show explores, women’s freedom of movement within the space they occupy. .

 

BI – The choreographies are performed with professional and amateur dancers, including Inhotim employees. What is the intent of this proposal?

CP – We specifically seek these different bodies working for the dance, rather than just one. This way we can bring out different experiences and effects and observe how these women’s bodies mingle with one other during the choreography. This professional-amateur relationship makes the performance unique, different in every movement, and this is reflected both for the dancers and for the audience.

 

BI – How does it feel to have Inhotim as the setting for this performance?

CP – It is wonderful. This place is truly amazing. Also, working with choreographies that involve works such as Desert Park (2010), by Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster and Piscina (2009), by Jorge Macchi, like we are going to do, is even more interesting, since both these works have great impact on the body, on energy and on space itself. The thing is, the whole of Inhotim is exceptional and mesmerizing right off the bat. I remember when we first came here back in 2012, Jacques [Hoepffner, visual artist and partner in preparing the show] and I only had half a day to visit the park. But even though this first visit was a quick one, we looked around and said, “Wow! We want to develop a project here”. And today this has been made possible.

 

BI – What unique aspect has Inhotim brought to these performances?

CP – Well, it is important to say that the performances we will be presenting here have been created specifically for this place, and they are related to these who artworks were will be using as the setting. Even with the connections we can draw between these performances and other materials from choreographers in France, or even other works I have developed in the past, at Inhotim we have this special relationship with space, nature, the weather, the vegetation, which is totally different from what we are used to in Europe. All of this brings unique elements to the choreographies and is totally aligned with this strong relationship with the environment developed in this work.

 

BI – What are your expectations for the work at Inhotim?

CP – It is hard to foresee what is going to happen, but often what we expect changes a bit when it becomes real, which ends up being one of the most fascinating aspects of this presentation. I believe something that is interesting and very typical of the artistic work is to allow yourself to be transformed by experiences and by those working with you. Our project is totally transformed by those who take part in the presentations, as well as by the space itself. Of course we have an idea of the results, but what truly matters is this transformation and how the place can impact the performances. We are always curious to know what will happen. I think the same thing happens with the audience.

 

Are you also curious to know the result of the performance? Then, make sure to go to Inhotim and check out the femmeuseposturalE. Click here for more details on this performance.

Reading time 3 min

What’s new at Inhotim Escola 2014

Redação Inhotim

The second year of Inhotim Escola promises to shake up Belo Horizonte’s agenda. Art exhibitions, films, lectures, courses, workshops and a novelty: in 2014 the the environmental theme comes in to play with the project Consumo Consciente na Praça [Concious Consumption at the Park]. Starting in April, it will promote discussions on consumption habits of modern society so as to build a more sustainable life style.

 

Among the actions planned for the year is the Dia do Carbono Zero [Zero Carbon Day], which aims to promote the reduction of emissions of greenhouse gases. Moreover, two-wheel lovers will be able to participate in the Pedal Verde, a bike circuit going through the southern-central region of Belo Horizonte aimed at raising awareness to the issue of urban mobility in the state capital.

 

O Sarau realizado pelo Inhotim Escola em 2013 reuniu diversas pessoas na Praça da Liberdade, em Belo Horizonte.
The soiree held by Inhotim Escola in 2013 gathered several people at Praça da Liberdade, in Belo Horizonte. Photo: Ricardo Mallaco

 

As for the arts, also in April, the public will have the opportunity to chat with Inhotim’s curator Jochen Volz on the relationship between art and architecture in the construction of art pavilions. Jochen has organized several exhibitions in Brazil and abroad, including international shows in the 53rd Venice Biennale. Since 2012, Jochen is also chief curator of the Serpentine Gallery in London. Among other activities, the schedule of Inhotim Escola includes the seminar Visão Yanomami [Yanomami Vision], whose theme is the work of photographer Claudia Andujar. Swiss living in Brazil since the 1950s, besides registering the life of the Yanomami people, Andujar became a major activist for indigenous cause in Brazil.

 

The old buildings that are part of the Circuito Cultural Praça da Liberdade will still host part of the activities. But this year, Inhotim Escola expands its actions to different locations in the state capital and other cities, and it will no longer have a fixed venue in Belo Horizonte. So far, the actions developed by the project have involved over two thousand participants.

 

Interested? Find out more about lnhotim Escola here.

Reading time 4 min

Simply Marepe

Equipe de mediadores

Marcos Reis Peixoto, or simply Marepe, was born in Santo Antônio de Jesus, a small town in the Recôncavo Baiano region.  His works at Inhotim are related to the northeastern cultural identity and to the simplicity of his place of origin, however, these works go way beyond this.  Rather than emphasizing on the drama of social problems, and perhaps even of the draught, Marepe potentiates discussions on the very stigmas created for the northeastern region.

Obra "A Bica" (1999), de Marepe
Obra “A Bica” (1999), de Marepe

A Bica (1999), Cabra (2007) and Olê ô picolé (2007), the three works by the artist currently on display at Inhotim, allow visitors to experience aspects of the everyday life ennobled of meanings, which is common in this work.  Marepe constantly uses materials that are not noble ones such as cardboard, rubber, beer cans and other everyday objects, building matter from ideas, from a form he likes to refer to as intuitive, despite the many influences present.  

Obra "Olê ô picolê" (2007), de Marepe
Obra “Olê ô picolê” (2007), de Marepe

By reutilizing products that gain new meanings when out of context, Marepe is constantly associated with French artist Marcel Duchamp, connected to Dadaism, an avant-garde modernist movement that started in the early 20th century. When conceptual art was decomposed and unfolded into philosophy, information, linguistics, mathematics, autobiography, and social criticism, it left a legacy in art history, and the artist uses this legacy to create works that translate his ideas, experiences and memories.  

Obra "Cabra" (2007), de Marepe
Obra “Cabra” (2007), de Marepe

His works are not appropriations of objects that acquire new symbolism; they are rather confections of objects similar to those used in the everyday lives of many people which, as art pieces, acquire new meanings.  Marepe calls these symbolic recreations nécessaire, while Duchamp refers to them as ready-mades.

 

At the park, Marepe’s simplicity if often perceived with a certain degree of awkwardness.   His works propose a dialog, cultural acknowledgment and reflection on recurring issues in contemporary art, with a Brazilian and northeastern twist at the same time.

 

 

Written by Beatriz Alvarenga, Daniela Rodrigues, Marília Balzani and Pedro Vinícius, Art and Education mediators at Inhotim

 

 

In February, the artistic theme visit proposes reflections on the works of Marepe on display at Inhotim.  Check out the program here.