An artwork of
art usually gets its title after being complete or during its creation, but an
exhibition instead begins with a title. The title is the subject, the colour
and direction of all future production; the title significantly defines the
success of the exhibition. The subject of Baroque seems like a first choice for
Braga, although, it was not an easy choice from the curatorial point of view.
Announcing "Thinking Baroque" as an open call for artists, felt a little
like a gamble, I was excited. In "Thinking Baroque" is missing "the";
which I was aiming for, as it meant for evoking the baroque way of thinking. I
was not sure what how the artists would react: will this challenge inspire some
outstanding relevant proposals or will it merely attract the repetitions of the
decorative elements of what is called the "Baroque style" or
mannerism? My gamble paid off. The artistic works presented for the exhibition
have notably little to do with historical recollection, wether it be the
narrative or the technical solution; these artworks are contemporary; but still
they are baroque. Therefore, there are so many ways of thinking Baroque; and
agglomerating this artistic intention in Braga has its charm and sense and its shock.
The shock comes from the habitual reduction of the baroque to its decorative manifestations.
The city's architecture claims its full historical rights to authentic baroque
heritage; introducing new interpretations, in the form of artworks, unfreezes
the margins of habitual perception and promises a continuity for the great
tradition. The Baroque heritage, deservingly, serves here as an aesthetic
bridge between the archaic and the modern: the stories role into vital shapes
and dance, the metal sings, the gold shines, it is not possible to compete with
this mastery with of past architects and artists; but it is possible to engage
in a dialogue.
This
is an excerpt from
the text of
the catalog by:
Madina Zingashina, curator of the project ART-MAP Braga 2017
