The traveling exhibitions program of the 35th Bienal will win over Brazil and the world, launching internationally in Argentina on March 20.
After critical and public success in São Paulo in 2023, Fundação Bienal takes choreographies of the impossible to over ten cities, with its first international foray in Buenos Aires at Malba and Palacio Pereda.
In the second half of 2023, the 35th Bienal de São Paulo – choreographies of the impossible took center stage in São Paulo’s artistic and cultural scene. In 2024 it embarks on a journey through its traveling exhibitions program, which started in January at the Museu de Arte Moderna in Rio de Janeiro, and will make its first international stop in March in Buenos Aires.
From March 20 to May 27, choreographies of the impossible will be on view at Malba and Palacio Pereda (headquarters of the Brazilian Embassy), in Buenos Aires. This year, the 35th Bienal de São Paulo will also visit Angola (Luanda, in partnership with the Guimarães Rosa Institute) and Bolivia (La Paz, in partnership with Museo Nacional de Arte - MNA).
For curators Diane Lima, Grada Kilomba, Hélio Menezes, and Manuel Borja-Villel, it is significant that the exhibition is traveling to all regions of the country and internationally: “The debates proposed by the 35th Bienal cross countless territories around the world, so the fact that the choreographies of the impossible are not restricted to the Bienal Pavilion is extremely important for the work undertaken.”
Fundação Bienal de São Paulo has been running the Bienal de São Paulo traveling exhibition program consistently since 2011, the 29th edition of the show. The international stages of this traveling exhibitions program will mark the first time that it will be shown in Argentina and Bolivia and also the first time it will be seen on the African continent.
Andrea Pinheiro, president of the Fundação Bienal de São Paulo, emphasizes the importance of international travel for the show. “Taking the choreographies of the impossible to other countries with the support of the federal government and its ministries of Culture and Foreign Affairs is extremely important for the dissemination of art and a Brazilian artistic vision in the world. The exchange of experiences between audiences and institutions like Malba is one of the great riches of the Bienal de São Paulo’s traveling exhibition program,” she says.
About choreographies of the impossible in Buenos Aires
With a specially designed selection for Buenos Aires, the Bienal will occupy two iconic spaces in the Argentine capital. Buenos Aires will host one of the excerpts of the 35th Bienal de São Paulo – choreographies of the impossible, in partnership with the Brazilian Embassy in Buenos Aires and the Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires – Malba. Curated by Diane Lima, Grada Kilomba, Hélio Menezes, and Manuel Borja-Villel, the show, which was a critical and public success in 2023, arrives in Buenos Aires for its first exhibition outside of Brazil, from March 20th to May 27th. This year, the traveling exhibitions will expand to over ten cities, and in Buenos Aires they will be divided between Malba, the country’s most important modern and contemporary art institution, and Palacio Pereda, home to the offices of the Brazilian Embassy in Argentina, with a total of eight participating artists:
Malba:
Arthur Bispo do Rosário
Aurora Cursino dos Santos
Nontsikelelo Mutiti
Ubirajara Ferreira Braga
Palacio Pereda:
Aline Motta
Elda Cerrato
Gabriel Gentil Tukano
Manuel Chavajay
The 35th Bienal de São Paulo – choreographies of the impossible explores the complexities and urgency of the contemporary world, addressing social, political, and cultural transformations. The curators seek to tension the spaces between the possible and the impossible, the visible and the invisible, the real and the imaginary, giving voice to diverse issues and perspectives in a poetic manner.
Choreography, understood as a set of body-centered movements that defy limits, considers diverse trajectories and areas of activity, creating strategies to face institutional and curatorial challenges. The choreographies of the impossible generate their own relationships, times, and spaces, offering visitors a striking experience.
“The Bienal de São Paulo, created in 1951, is a source of pride for Brazil because of its central role in promoting art, educating audiences, and cultural exchange. That’s why this first tour of Argentina opens up many spaces for dialogue. It is a special joy for the Embassy of Brazil to host – together with Malba – an excerpt from the 35th Bienal – choreographies of the impossible, a collective reflection on art as a space for the invisible to move. Rich in meaning, this exchange reflects the growing integration between our countries and brings Argentinian audiences a view that transcends borders,” says Julio Glinternick Bitelli, Brazil’s ambassador to Argentina.
Teresa Bulgheroni, president of the Fundación Malba, acknowledges: “It is a great honor to realize this project at Malba in collaboration with the Fundação Bienal de São Paulo and the Embassy of Brazil, to bring to the local public a part of the 35th Bienal with a group of works that confront the ‘challenges of the world’s impossibilities’. With a long history and tradition in the region, this is the first time the event has been brought to Buenos Aires: an opportunity to discover the artists and ideas that are shaping the contemporary art scene today.”
About the Fundação Bienal de São Paulo
Founded in 1962, the Fundação Bienal de São Paulo is a private, nonprofit institution with no party, political or religious ties, whose actions aim to democratize access to culture and foster interest in artistic creation. Every two years, the Fundação holds the Bienal de São Paulo, the largest exhibition of the Southern Hemisphere, and its traveling exhibitions in several cities in Brazil and abroad. The institution is also the custodian of two items of Latin American artistic and cultural heritage: a historical archive of modern and contemporary art that is a standard reference in Latin America (the Arquivo Histórico Wanda Svevo), and the Ciccillo Matarazzo Pavilion, the head office of the Fundação, designed by Oscar Niemeyer and listed as historical heritage. The Fundação Bienal de São Paulo is also responsible for conceiving and producing Brazil’s representations at the Venice Biennales of art and architecture, a prerogative bestowed upon it decades ago by the Federal Government in recognition of the excellence of its contributions to Brazilian culture.
About the Brazilian Embassy
The Brazilian Embassy in Buenos Aires promotes Brazilian cultural expression in Argentina. Mutual knowledge generates lasting bonds of trust between Brazilian and Argentinian societies and creates a favorable environment for bilateral relations. The Embassy hosts art exhibitions in the Cultural Space at Palacio Pereda, one of the country’s most emblematic buildings.
About Malba
Malba, the Museum of Latin American Art in Buenos Aires, is an internationally recognised benchmark for Latin American art and an icon of artistic and cultural life in Buenos Aires. Founded in 2001, it is a non-profit organization that preserves and exhibits one of the most important collections of Latin American art in the world, with more than 700 works by the region’s leading modern and contemporary artists. It also organizes an annual program of temporary exhibitions of Argentinian, Latin American and international art, in collaboration with other regional and global institutions. Since its foundation, the museum has also acted as an inclusive and plural space for the production of cultural activities aimed at broad and diverse audiences. It has two important departments for Film and Literature, as well as solid programs for Education and Publications. It receives an average of 500,000 visitors a year.
Event:
35th Bienal de São Paulo – choreographies of the impossible
Traveling exhibition program
Palacio Pereda and Malba
Curators: Diane Lima, Grada Kilomba, Hélio Menezes, and Manuel Borja-Villel
Mar 20 – May 27, 2024
Palacio Pereda
Rua Adjacente Cerrito, 1350 (Microcentro)
Tue – Sat, 12 – 8pm
Free entry
MALBA
Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires
Av Figueroa Alcorta, 3415 / www.malba.org.ar
Thurs – Mon, 12pm – 8pm; Wed, 11am – 8pm
Admission: general, $5000; students, teachers, and pensioners with ID, $2500; children under five and people with disabilities, free; Wednesdays: general, $2500; students, teachers, pensioners with ID and people with disabilities, free.
Guided tours: Thursdays, 5pm
Source: Pickles PR
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