The photograph is a still from Rivane Neuenschwander's recent film Eu sou uma arara [I Am an Arara] (2002), which Neuenschwander made in collaboration with filmmaker Mariana Lacerda. The film is based on extensive research and a number of actions in São Paulo, in which numerous participants paraded in the city’s streets dressed as animals, plants, mushrooms or fantastic creatures inspired by Brazil’s flora and fauna. Spreading powerful messages that are not only based on words but also incorporate sounds, smells, smoke and soap bubbles, the aim was to draw attention to the destruction of the rainforest and the concerns of the indigenous population. ‘I am an Arara’ is a popular expression among the Bororo people who live in the state of Mato Grosso. The image shows the artist, in a tortoise mask, handing out postcards of a village in the Amazon forest to passers-by on a bridge in São Paulo.
Mariana Lacerda (born 1975 in Recife, Brazil) lives and works in São Paulo, Brazil.
Rivane Neuenschwander (born 1967 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil) lives and works in São Paulo, Brazil.
Filmstill, C-print
27 × 17,6 cm
Limited edition photograph accompanying the publication Rivane Neuenschwander. knife does not cut fire
Copies: 100 + 20 AP
Signed andnumbered on label
Available in the museum shop only.