Associação Cultural Videobrasil

An Orisha-worshipping transvestite and an evangelical pastor clash while inhabiting the same body, on the streets of downtown Salvador, Bahia; in Mali, an abandoned village is taken by flaming bodies; family conversations retrace the formation of the State of Israel. Three examples of the bevy of themes, characters and cultures expressed in the set of 14 winning works at the Southern Panoramas competitive show of the 18^th Contemporary Art Festival Sesc_Videobrasil. From May onwards, these works will start featuring in cities in Brazil and worldwide in the 2014-2015 edition of the Festival’ On Tour project. Two shows are already scheduled. The first, at the Sesc São Carlos unit, is set to open on May 6 and continue until July 13. Next, the works will be shown at Sesc Campinas from July 29 through October 5.

In São Carlos, the show will feature a recording of the Grand Prize-winning performance from the 18^th edition of the Festival, O Samba do Crioulo Doido, by Luiz de Abreu (Brazil), alongside the nine video and video installation works that won artist residency prizes. They are: Funfun, by Ayrson Heráclito (Brazil); Tomo, by Bakary Diallo (Mali); My Father, by Basir Mahmood (Pakistan); Doméstica, by Gabriel Mascaro (Brazil); Journey to a Land Otherwise Known, by Laura Huertas Millan (Colombia); We Are One, by LucFosther Diop (Cameroon); The Sun Glows Over the Mountains, by Nurit Sharett (Israel); Pipe Dreams, by Ali Cherri (Lebanon) and Sergio e Simone, by Virgínia de Medeiros (Brazil). On occasion of the show’s opening, on May 6 at 7 pm, the first Public Programs meeting of the On Tour project will take place, including an opening panel featuring 18^th Festival curators and local researchers and curators, at the Sesc São Carlos Theater.

In Campinas, the opening meeting will be repeated on July 29 (time pending confirmation), at Espaço Programas Públicos (Public Programs Venue), once again featuring festival curators and local researchers. Here, in addition to the ten winning works, the four works awarded Honorable Mentions at the Festival will be on display: Rabeca, by Caetano Dias (Brazil); Brisas, by Enrique Ramirez (Chile); 9493, by Marcellvs L. (Brazil); and Motherland, by Sherman Ong (Malaysia).

In addition to 18^th Festival works, terminals for accessing the VB Video Library, comprising approximately 1,300 pieces from the Videobrasil Collection, will be available at both Sesc São Carlos and Sesc Campinas. Other onsite computers will grant access to Channel VB, the audiovisual section of the Videobrasil website where Videobrasil on TV programs are featured; recordings of Public Programs meetings; interviews and statements from artists, curators and guests; and behind-the-scenes features and recordings of performances presented throughout the Festival’s eighteen editions.

At the venues, the audience will also have access to PLATFORM:VB, an online art research and experimentation tool that explores and builds upon the connections between contents generated by Videobrasil’s actions. The platform includes mappings by guest curators and contents about the works on show, selected by the artists themselves. Viewers can gain a better understanding of the process leading up to the artworks, learn about the artists’ references, and explore links to photos and videos selected by the artists as influential to their creative research work.