Could you talk a bit about your background and what inspired you to become a curator?
I was born in São Paulo, Brazil and always had a deep interest in art. I know it is a cliche, but I can remember studying Italian old masters when I was seven or eight and getting to the conclusion that one day I had to see these works in real life. In Latin America we have an interesting relationship and cultural influence when we think about Europe and the US. The MASP (Museum of Art of São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand) for example, was a very special to visit, it still is.
I started my MA at Sotheby’s planning to spend much more time thinking of administration matters in galleries and museums, but very quickly I came to the conclusion that my passion – among all the different areas I could explore in the art world – where really in making contemporary art accessible, on a broad social sphere as a curator and individually as an art consultant. To me being a curator is about creating bridges between an audience and an artwork, a facilitator of sorts.
What are the main influences for your work? What do you do, or where do you go to find creative inspiration?
I definitely spend a lot of time with art magazines! Besides that I tend to read a lot of books that have been written recently rather than classics, the reason being that I really want to be connected to what is being thought today. There is so much content out there, so in the realm of publishing I tend to read what is out now. My creative process as a curator usually traces parallels between literature, theory and contemporary art at large, or other art forms. For example, currently I am reading Non-Referential Architecture by Markus Breitschmid and Valerio Olgiati, and it has been a source of plenty of thinking around heavy conceptualisation around architecture in their case, but I find it very inspiring whilst thinking of contemporary art. I am also reading Funny Weather by Olivia Laing and although it was written before the pandemic, it does tackles a lot of the political turmoil we see today. After finishing these, I plan to start Recollections of My Non-Existence by Rebecca Solnit.
Could you describe your curatorial approach and has your curatorial vision changed over the years? And could you speak about what makes an exhibition interesting to you?
It is rather simple, but I learnt during my curatorial studies with Marcus Verhagen to always ask myself: Why now? Why in this space? Why with these artists? And it is incredible how much you get challenged by just thinking about this! The themes that I want to explore, discuss and show are always changing as my research shifts from one subject to the next. It is also impossible to overlook the world and the way the current events are already shifting the way we think and what interests us as a society.
To me an exhibition needs to make us think and to see a subject or theme through different eyes. For example the Generation loss: 10 years Julia Stoschek Collection exhibition curated by Ed Atkins is a great example where the way of displaying video art was challenged and embraced the inevitable changes in equipment used to show these same artworks. Ed Atkins also has this book called A Primer for Cadavers that it very interesting and haunting.
Could you talk a bit on your thoughts to current approaches to curating, including your curatorial process and your thoughts and interest in transcultural exhibitions?
Curating has many ways to exist, and this plurality is extremely beneficial to the art world. I particularly respond well to exhibitions that have a clear and objective framework, but once you dive into it one can notice many more ideas and subjects beyond the first description of the show. For example the ECAL Augmented Photography exhibition from 2017, here the theories around a speculative photography goes beyond 3D renderings of objects and presents sculpture objects and new forms of image creating. Another example is the Ngoro Ngoro exhibition in Berlin 2018 that grouped together a long and impressive list of artists.
I believe transcultural exhibition are inevitable when we think of contemporary art because most artists travel and expand their research extensively from the countries where they were born, this influx of information and inspiration is unstoppable. The book Globalisation in Contemporary Art by my professor Marcus Verhagen is a great source.
Could you speak about your curatorial approach for Canticle of the Creatures? How has your experience been curating for an online exhibition as opposed to a physical exhibition?
Canticle has been with me for a while now. I always wanted to do something with the late baroque buildings I live with in Puglia. These buildings are fantastic, but overlooked for not being in one of the most known cities in Italy, like Rome or Venice. I also wanted to make connections with contemporary works that were not directly inspired by any of the reference points, and perhaps through that reveal some of the everlasting influences that Italian art has in the world at large, and specially Brazil. After deciding for the theme I spend a few months talking to artists, doing virtual studio visits and connecting with new artists. In the end the pieces just came together naturally and Canticle took the form that we see today. Curating online is a challenge that I approached with the idea of doing something that could only be done online. The exhibition and the visual comparisons couldn’t really be done in real life, all at the same time. The exhibition exists in a 2D format through to the photographs included (of works and churches) I also embraced the 2D to create a curatorial narrative that I hope visitors will take part and debate around the parallels I am presenting throughout the exhibition.
Canticle of the Creatures
Curated by Brunno Silva
OPENART Online Exhibition
17 September- 30 December 2020
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Image courtesy of the curator.