A new exhibition has just arrived at the CCBB in Rio de Janeiro. In ‘Arte Subdesenvolvida’, more than 130 works by different Brazilian artists, including Cândido Portinari, portray a remarkable period in history. In it, economically and socially vulnerable countries were classified as “underdeveloped”. Find out more!
Exhibition portrays underdevelopment and is divided into decades
It was in the 1930s, after the Second World War (1939-1945), that economically and socially vulnerable countries came to be called “underdeveloped”. This generated a great reaction among artists of the time, who took a stand and even fought against this concept.
Thus, part of this production will be present in the exhibition ‘Arte Subdesenvolvida’ (Underdeveloped Art), which has just arrived at the CCBB in Rio de Janeiro.
To portray the debate around underdevelopment, the exhibition is divided into decades.
On the first axis, “Tem Gente com Fome” presents the initial discussions around the concept, between the 1930s and 1940s. The second section, “Work and Struggle”, presents a series of works from different regions of Brazil, where strikes and struggles for rights began to proliferate.
The third block is divided into two. Thus, “World and Movement” mixes politics, culture and art, with documents from the Popular Culture Movement (MCP) in Recife and the National Union of Students (UNE) in Rio de Janeiro.
In the second part, “Aesthetics of Hunger”, poverty is a central theme in artistic productions. Thus, films by Glauber Rocha, works by Hélio Oiticica and plays by the Opinião group are included in this section.
Finally, in “Brazil is My Abyss”, the axis features works from the period of the military dictatorship and artists who reflected their anguish and uncertainty about the future.
‘Underdeveloped Art’ features works by Portinari and other big names
There were many artists who spoke out during the period, and the exhibition includes works by more than 40 great names in national art. Among them: Abdias Nascimento, Candido Portinari, Carlos Vergara, Carolina Maria de Jesus, Graciliano Ramos, Henfil, Jorge Amado, Lygia Clark, Rachel de Queiroz and others!
It is worth highlighting, among so many works, two paintings by Cândido Portinari, “Burial” (1940) and “Kneeling Girl” (1945), which are part of the exhibition’s collection. This is because many of them depict despair, death or escape from a territory marked by a lack of almost everything.
Another work that also stands out in the exhibition is Monument to Hunger, produced by the winner of the Venice Biennale, Italian-Brazilian Anna Maria Maiolino. It consists of two bags filled with rice and beans wrapped in a black bow. According to the artist, the bow is a symbol of mourning.
Exhibition also includes educational activities
In addition to the exhibition itself, other activities and interactive installations will also be active at the CCBB.
As in São Paulo and Belo Horizonte, Randolpho Lamonier’s “Refrigerator Dreams – Hallelujah 2000th Century” will also take stock of the consumption dreams of Cariocas, ranging from audios and manuscripts by the people interviewed to objects and textiles. The installation will occupy the museum’s Rotunda.
During the exhibition, there will also be educational activities, such as the talk “Art and underdevelopment in Brazil” with curator and researcher Moacir dos Anjos.
The event will discuss the ways in which Brazilian art reacted to the condition of underdevelopment in the country between the 1930s and early 1980s. And how it incorporated, thematically and formally, the paradoxes of this condition.
Underdeveloped Art
📅Until 05/05 | from 9am to 8pm (except Tuesdays)
📌CCBB | Rua Primeiro de Março, 66 -Centro
💵Free admission