By Ciara Long, Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – A new exhibition on visual poetry from across the globe opened last week in Rio’s Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil (CCBB), showing work from more than sixty artists from around the world.
The exhibition is accompanied by special performances on Saturday evenings over the next month, which put musical and dance interpretations of poetry on the stage.
The exhibition of visual poetry, ‘Imagética’, is on display on the fourth floor of CCBB, and is part of an interdisciplinary arts project called ‘Rio de Versos’ (Rio of Verses). Works by 67 artists from 21 countries, including Brazil, form part of the project, which was curated by poet and artist Tchello D’Barros.
‘Rio de Versos’, which opened this weekend, also paid tribute to one of the movement’s creators, poet and visual artist Wlademir Dias-Pino.
The movement’s aim, when it began in the 1950s, was to expand the theoretical limits of poetry through the range of artistic techniques, which include drawing, painting, collage, infographics, photography, reprography, calligraphy and computer graphics.
Artistic and cultural coordinator at Rio university Faculdades Integradas Hélio Alonso (FACHA), Sady Bianchin, told EBC that the movement was an important development in considering how art can facilitate new dialogue.
“In approaching art as an instrument of social transformation, we have been able to promote various actions and developments, allowing interaction, deepening and reflection,” said Bianchin.
The project, which is supported by FACHA, will also feature special performances and round table discussions for the next four Saturdays. Half-hour discussions will begin at 5:30 PM and will be led by a group of ten Brazilian poets and actors.
Following these discussions, at 7:30 PM the show ‘Memórias de Fogo’ (Memories of Fire) will be performed, bringing to life visual poetry and accompanied by both musical and dance interpretations of works.
The ‘Imagética’ exhibition is free to enter and will remain in CCBB until April 17th, and is open from Wednesday to Monday, 9AM to 9PM. Further details on the exhibition can be found on the CCBB website.