Itinerary of the exhibition “Images that Don't Conform” will be open to the public at the CCVM

Starting July 25, São Luís (MA) will host the exhibition Images that Don’t Conform, which brings together pieces from the collection of the Brazilian Historical and Geographic Institute (IHGB) and works by contemporary artists. The exhibition will run until November 4 at the Vale Maranhão Cultural Center, located on Rua Direita, 149, in the Historic Center of the capital of Maranhão.

Organized by the Ministry of Culture, the Vale Cultural Institute and the Odeon Institute, the exhibition presents to the public rare and significant pieces and works from the IHGB collection that refer to the colonial, imperial, and republican periods of Brazil, and works by contemporary artists from Maranhão, proposing an in-depth dialogue about the deconstruction of the historical narratives already established. Curated by Paulo Knauss and local co-curators, the itinerary through three Brazilian states reflects the articulating work of the Vale Cultural Institute in the search for the decentralization and integration of the various cultural manifestations throughout the country.

This experience circulating in Brazil will continue to Belo Horizonte (MG) at the end of November. Based on the dialogue between the old and the new, the exhibition has curators and artists from the respective locations, thus recognizing the diversity of contemporary production and inventorying the multiplicity of views on the history of Brazil. “It is extremely important that we are familiar with history, that we are in contact with the past, and that we delve into an analytical and critical vision of time,” comments Carlos Gradim, president of the Odeon Institute, the creator and director of the itinerary. “The exhibition experience at the Rio Art Museum – MAR, also curated by Marcelo Campos and in Belém, curated by Aldrin Figueiredo, shows that new narratives are possible and indispensable for us to think, together, what should be, a more diverse and democratic present and a possible future for ALL. Brazil is being rethought and it is a great pleasure to be part of this”, concludes Gradim.

“Images that do not conform seeks to make the collection of the Brazilian Historical and Geographic Institute (IHGB), the oldest cultural institution in Brazil, which was founded in 1838 under the protection of Emperor Pedro II, with the purpose of collecting documents of national history, better known to the public. It is expected that the inventory of differences between the old and the new, between the erudite and the popular, between the national and the regional, will stimulate us to think historically about today’s Brazil and its challenges based on a sensitive approach”, explains Paulo Knauss, full partner and vice-president of the IHGB, in addition to curating the exhibition.

In São Luís, the exhibition will include works by important artists from Maranhão who, based on the works of the IHGB and the reflections on them, will give new and complex meaning to history through art. “The cradle of Maranhão culture is Afro-indigenous, so it is essential that, when receiving a historical collection of our heritage, a counterpoint to what was told about the past be proposed. Silvana Mendes takes a fresh look at historical portraits, with black women as the protagonist; Claudio Costa proposes a clandestine archery, in dialogue with the ruin and with the uses of the past; and Tassila Custodes deals with the armorial and the importance of colors for the definition of Afro-Brazilian culture. In addition to them, there are other invited artists, all of whom propose a renewal of perspective and another historical writing”, explains Gabriel Gutierrez, director of the Vale Maranhão Cultural Center and curator of the exhibition.

The exhibition premiered in 2021, when it was on display at the Rio Art Museum (MAR), where the dialogue took place with artists from Rio de Janeiro.

Service

Exhibition “Images that don’t conform”

From July 25 to November 4, 2023 at the Vale Maranhão Cultural Center

Address: Rua Direita, 149 — Centro, São Luís (MA) — free admission

About Vale Cultural Institute

Instituto Cultural Vale is based on the principle that living culture allows people to broaden their worldview and create future perspectives. It plays an important role in social transformation and seeks to democratize access, promote art, culture, knowledge, and the dissemination of various artistic expressions in our country, while contributing to the strengthening of the creative economy.

There are more than 600 projects created, supported, or sponsored in 24 states and the Federal District. Among them, a network of own cultural spaces, sponsored by the Federal Law on Incentive to Culture, with free visitation, unique identity and vocation: Memorial Minas Gerais Vale (MG), Vale Museum (ES), Vale Maranhão Cultural Center (MA) and Casa da Cultura de Canaã dos Carajás (PA). Where there is Culture, Vale is. Visit the Vale Cultural Institute website: institutoculturalvale.org

About the Odeon Institute

The Odeon Institute is a non-profit Social Cultural Organization (OSC) that has been active in cultural management for over 25 years. She is currently the manager of the Museum of Sexual Diversity in São Paulo, co-director of the artistic project of the Rio Museum of Art, in addition to managing the Municipal Cultural Circuit of Belo Horizonte and the Itinerance of the exhibition Images that Don’t Conform. Social organization responsible for the inauguration of the Rio Art Museum in March 2013, Odeon works in artistic and cultural management in several cities in Brazil.