quinta-feira, 19 de agosto de 2010

Broken mirrors

The hall of mirrors (Hütter, Schneider, Schult)

The young man stepped into the hall of mirrors
Where he discovered a reflection of himself
Even the greatest stars discover themselves in the lookingglass
Even the greatest stars discover themselves in the lookingglass



Sometimes he saw his real face
And sometimes a stranger at his place
Even the greatest stars find their face in the looking glass
Even the greatest stars find their face in the looking glass

He fell in love with the image of himself
and suddenly the picture was distorted
Even the greatest stars dislike themselves in the looking glass
Even the greatest stars dislike themselves in the looking glass

He made up the person he wanted to be
And changed into a new personality
Even the greatest stars change themselves in the looking glass
Even the greatest stars change themselves in the looking glass

The artist is living in the mirror
With the echoes of himself
Even the greatest stars live their lives in the looking glass
Even the greatest stars live their lives in the looking glass

Even the greatest stars fix their face in the looking glass
Even the greatest stars fix their face in the looking glass

Even the greatest stars live their lives in the looking glass
Even the greatest stars live their lives in the looking glass

sábado, 7 de agosto de 2010

Os Profetas de Congonhas do Campo

Estive em Congonhas pela primeira vez em junho de 2009. Fazia um dia bonito de inverno, e o azul do céu contrastava perfeitamente com as esculturas dos Doze Profetas.
Como se sabe, o conjunto de esculturas em pedra sabão foi executado por Aleijadinho e seus ajudantes.
Mesmo sabendo estar diante de uma das principais obras do Barroco mineiro, a sensação foi de ambiguidade. As esculturas estão, sem exceção, vandalizadas desde tempos idos, em sua base. O muro que ladeia a igreja, também em pedra-sabão, tornou-se ao longo dos tempos, num painel em que inúmeros cidadãos, bem ou mal intencionados, ou somente alienados, deixaram como marca um mosaico de inscrições de vários tipos. Datas de casamento, aniversário, frases, juras de amor, promessas pagas, ou simplesmente uma marca pessoal, um nome e uma data, trouxeram um aspecto novo, nem por isso menos tenebroso para nossa educação patrimonial, às esculturas.
A primeira sensação é quase sempre de espanto.
Depois, vejam vocês, a constatação terrível de que é isso mesmo, não há o que se fazer, a não ser abstrair e aceitar o legado das intervenções populares à obra do Aleijadinho.

I went to Congonhas for the first time in june 2009.
It was a beautiful winter day, and the blue sky perfectly contrasted between the sculptures of the twelve Prophets.
As it’s known, the group of soapstone scupltures was made by the master Aleijadinho and his assistants, in XVIIIth century.
I knew that I was in front of one of the great masterpieces of the Barroque period in Brazil, but I felt disturbed, just because the sculptures, no exception, were vandalized since a long time for many unconscious visitors. The wall beside the church, also built in soapstone, became along decades a kind of display, in which many people, with good or bad intentions, or maybe just alienated, left their personal marks as an odd mosaic.
Birthday and wedding rememberings, love promises, religious pledges, or simply a name and a date, all of it brought a new aspect, a terrible example of our patrimonial education, to the sculptures.
The first sensation that you have is always amazing.
Soon, here we come, a terrible conclusion: this is it, nothing to do, but nevermind and accept the legacy of the popular interventions to the Aleijadinho’s masterpiece.


Daniel na cova dos leões


Ladeados pelos profetas, André Rosa e Gustavo Scheffer


Cartão postal


Vista geral de Congonhas


Passos





A nítida sensação de ter voltado no tempo


Cidades, adotem a ideia


Céu de Minas


Serão hieróglifos? Pinturas rupestres?








Abdias


Jonas


Kyrie eleison


Não perdoaram nem a língua da baleia...


Oséias