Xippas Arte Contemporáneo is pleased to present a solo exhibition of Cao Guimarães in Montevideo.
Guimarães is one of the most renowned artistes in the convergence of film and the visual arts. His work captures the quotidian phenomena that often goes unnoticed in the accelerated pace of contemporary society. What is not seen, but only hinted at, appears to take center stage. Through a watchful and poetic eye, the artist transforms the temporal perception, generating a kind of pause in the viewer, a delayed contemplation of reality.
After his first retrospective exhibition in Montevideo (Centro de Expocisiones Subte, 2010), Guimarães embarked on a period of strong links with Uruguay, both personally and professionally. From the outset, the artist found a sense of familiarity in the environment and in the cadence of the country, reminiscent of the atmospheres and environments of his homeland: Minas Gerais. As a result, several of his most recent film and photographic works are linked to the Uruguayan landscape.
The work of Guimarães does not tell stories and does not need to be anchored in plots or linear narrative, but manages to capture the essence of its experience.
For this exhibition, the artist proposes parallel scenarios of suspended landscapes, floating cities; a dialogue between the inland environments of Brazil and Uruguay.
The first room displays the photographic series Paisagens Reais, a tribute to the minero painter Alberto da Veiga Guignard (1896-1962). These are photographs of images where nature covers human trails; the fog over the sierras mineras (mountains) barely lets the spectator see the top floors of buildings.
The second room is devoted to the projection of the audiovisual LIMBO, recorded in Uruguay in 2011. This artwork unveils the interior of the country, reaching the border with Brazil; A place out of place, a place in-between. A hole in space and time. A playground for those who came before, to those who left early. Eternal windy Sunday. Cao Guimarães
In addition, two of his last films: Otto and Elvira Loreley – Alma de dragon will be exhibited on a weekly basis. Both projects are linked to contexts, experiences and characters located in our Uruguayan territory.
At the same time, we gladly announce the participation of Cao Guimarães in the next Biennale de Montevideo. It will be an opportunity to appreciate the language in the rich and diverse work of this great creator.
CAO GUIMARÃES
Born in 1965, in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Lives and works in Belo Horizonte.
With intense production since the late 80s, the artist has been collected by prestigious names such as Tate Modern (United Kingdom), MoMA and the Guggenheim Museum (USA), Fondation Cartier (France), Colección Jumex (Mexico), Inhotim (Brazil), Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza (Spain) and others.
Participated of important exhibitions such as XXV and XXVII , Brazil; Insite Biennial 2005, Mexico; Cruzamentos: Contemporary Art in Brazil, USA; Tropicália: The 60s in Brazil, Austria; Sharjah Biennial 11 Film Programme, and Ver é Uma Fábula, Brazil, a huge retrospective with most of the artist’s works exhibited in Itaú Cultural, Brazil.
He is the author of nine feature films: The Man of the Crowd (2013), Otto (2012), Elvira Lorelay Alma de Dragón (2012), Ex It (2010), Drifter (2007), Accident (2006), The Soul of the Bone (2004), Two Way Street (2002) and The End of the Endless (2001). Cao Guimarães has been invited to display his works at renowed international film festivals such as Cannes, Locarno, Sundance, Venice, Rotterdam and Berlin.
In 2011, MoMA held a retrospective of his films. In 2014, BAFICI (Buenos Aires) and Mexico’s Cinematheque also held retrospectives of his work.
