Speto
Frankfurt am Main, 2013
Fasade der Matthäuskirche in dre Friedrich-Ebert-Anlage 33
© Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt 2013, Foto: Norbert Miguletz
Jana Joana & Vitché
Frankfurt am Main, 2013
Schirn Außentreppenhaus
© Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt 2013, Foto: Norbert Miguletz
Brazilian Street Art at Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt In conjunction with Brazil’s guest appearance at Frankfurt Book Fair, the Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt is presenting the multifaceted world of Brazilian graffiti art for the first time ever in Germany. 5 September – 27 October 2013.]]>
Source: Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt
The major cities of Brazil are home to one of the world’s most vital and fascinating graffiti scenes. In terms of both content and aesthetic quality, this colourful, dynamic and unique movement differs significantly from the American and European street-art scenes. Brazilian street art stands apart from the globalized graffiti culture by virtue not only of the specific political and social climate in a country rocked by profound upheavals, but also because of the incredible abundance of styles and techniques it encompasses.
Eleven artists and artist groups from São Paulo and other Brazilian cities have been invited to exhibit their paintings in urban settings throughout Frankfurt, beginning with the Schirn building, and thus to alter the everyday image of the city. Their works include figurative and abstract, light-hearted and socially critical paintings ranging from oversized murals to unpretentious, ephemeral signs and symbols. They will appear, among other places, on bank towers, bridge abutments on the banks of the Main, the floor of the “Hauptwache,” “St. Matthäus” Church and the former city police presidium. Yet another highlight is a painted subway train. Known as a “whole train,” this form of graffiti is regarded as the supreme discipline among graffiti artists. A mobile app developed specifically for the exhibition featuring a wealth of background information and artists’ videos is available to help visitors navigate as they stroll through downtown Frankfurt.
The metropolis of São Paulo is a leading centre of Brazilian street art, rivalled only by Rio de Janeiro and Curitiba. Since the mid-1980s, the local scene in that city has evolved into one of the most vital and artistically diverse street-art cultures in the world. It is characterized by highly distinctive and extremely varied interventions in urban space—and it is omnipresent in São Paulo. After twenty years of military dictatorship, the strong desire to promote the free expression of public opinion led to the growth of a politically motivated counter-culture. In contrast to the global scene, graffiti is not only tolerated in the cities of Brazil, it has been accepted to a certain extent as part of the visual culture. Brazilians distinguish between pixação, the Brazilian form of tagging, and graffiti, as represented by large-scale figurative and abstract murals of the type painted by the eleven artists invited to Frankfurt by the Schirn.
Related content
Jeff Koons at the Schirn Kunsthalle (exhibition, 2012)
Follow us on:
