9th Bienal do Mercosul in Porto Alegre Explores Nature-Culture Interactions Through Industrial Collaborations
In 2013, Porto Alegre, Brazil, hosted the 9th Bienal do Mercosul, themed 'Weather Permitting,' featuring over 100 artworks curated by Sofía Hernández Chong Cuy across four locations. The exhibition focused on the interplay between nature and culture, presenting historic works such as Robert Rauschenberg's Mud Muse (1969–71) and David Medalla's Sand Machine (1964/2013). New pieces included Cinthia Marcelle's rust carpet from Gerdau mining plants and Lucy Skaer's resin slabs from the Irani factory. Tarek Atoui's performance, Signal Jammed Geographies (2013), took place atop a gasworks roof. Other notable contributions were Eduardo Navarro's telepathic message and Fernanda Laguna's letter in a bottle. Key sites included Memorial do Rio Grande do Sul, Santander Cultural, and an old gasworks building, along with educational resources for students.
Key facts
- The 9th Bienal do Mercosul took place in Porto Alegre, Brazil, in 2013.
- Curator Sofía Hernández Chong Cuy organized the exhibition under the theme 'Weather Permitting.'
- Over 100 artworks were displayed across four venues: Memorial do Rio Grande do Sul, Santander Cultural, MARGS museum, and an old gasworks building.
- Historic recommissioned works included Robert Rauschenberg's Mud Muse and David Medalla's Sand Machine.
- Artist placements in industrial settings led to new commissions, such as Cinthia Marcelle's rust carpet and Lucy Skaer's resin sculptures.
- Performances included Tarek Atoui's Signal Jammed Geographies on a gasworks roof, mixing radio signals from Ilha do Presídio island.
- Allora & Calzadilla's wire sculpture at MARGS museum was designed to transmit ham radio signals to the International Space Station.
- The Bienal featured educational programs for schoolchildren from Rio Grande do Sul and online essays like The Cloud.
Entities
Artists
- Cinthia Marcelle
- Tarek Atoui
- David Zink Yi
- David Medalla
- Robert Rauschenberg
- George Levantis
- Lucy Skaer
- Aleksandra Mir
- Allora & Calzadilla
- Malak Helmy
- Eduardo Navarro
- Fernanda Laguna
- Sofía Hernández Chong Cuy
Institutions
- Bienal do Mercosul
- Memorial do Rio Grande do Sul
- Santander Cultural
- Los Angeles County Museum of Art
- Teledyne Corporation
- Artist Placement Group
- Gerdau
- Irani
- MARGS museum
- International Space Station
Locations
- Porto Alegre
- Brazil
- Minas Gerais
- Ilha do Presídio
- Los Angeles
- United Kingdom
- Alexandria
- Cairo
- Egypt
- Buenos Aires
- Argentina
- Rio Grande do Sul