By: OPAVIVARÁ!
Part of the festival Projeto Brasil - The Sky Is Already Falling
The installation “Formosa Decelerator“ by the Brasilian art-collectiv OPAVIVARÁ! creates an ambience that blends two typically Brazilian indigenous traditions: the popular practice of shamanism through curative herbs and the hammocks used by indigenous people to sleep. Enclosed by an octagonal wood structure, the sixteen hammocks are an open invitation to relax (and, interestingly, the first Portuguese colonists associated the hammocks with laziness, believing the indigenous people wasted too much time in them).
Originally conceived for the Taipei Biennale, the eight-sided design is inspired by the figure used in Feng Shui as an ‘energy map’ and in Taoist cosmology to represent the fundamental principles of reality. It is a space of deceleration, channeling the creative power of chance encounters. The table in the middle of the structure has been set up so that one can create one’s own medicinal mix of herbs for a cup of tea. All through the festival “Projeto Brasil“ the audience will be able to relax in this installation on the lawn in front of HAU2. The hammock-installation will also serve as an informal meeting point for artists and audiences to discuss the current situation in Brazil.
By: OPAVIVARÁ!