João Maria Gusmão & Pedro Paiva
Lua Cão (with Alexandre Estrela)

Oct 10th, 2018 – Jan 5th, 2019
La Casa Encendida, Madrid

Copyright La Casa Encendida, Madrid
Copyright La Casa Encendida, Madrid
Copyright La Casa Encendida, Madrid
Copyright La Casa Encendida, Madrid

Lua Cão is an experimental exercise derived from the intersection of works by Alexandre Estrela, João Maria Gusmão and Pedro Pavia, originally presented at an old sawmill by Galeria Zé dos Bois. The exhibition curated by Natxo Checa consists of twenty moving-image pieces: videos by Alexandre Estela and 16mm films by João Maria Gusmão + Pedro Paiva. Presented in this former industrial area, these works were not only shown on screens or similar media but also formed a constellation of pieces that were activated at different moments during the visit. Thanks to this configuration, Lua Cão is presented as a performative film production rooted in a mechanical vision, which rejects conventional perspective in favour of an immersive, panoptic experience.

The collision of two worlds—the universes of Alexandre Estrela, João Maria Gusmão and Pedro Paiva—produces non-linear, empathetic, randomly synchronised narratives which, in a shared manner, focus the viewer’s attention on empty spaces through the materialisation and objectification of the image, the alignment of the pieces or the intervals created by the sequences.

The curator and the Portuguese artists have had a close relationship for over two decades, ever since they decided to travel together to different locations across the globe. Those journeys became experimental exercises for collecting shared experiences at each stop along the way, and this exhibition is therefore a product of that personal collaboration.

About João Maria Gusmão

João Maria Gusmão (*1979) is known for practices and meta-practices ranging from experimental film to photography, sculpture, drawing, literature and curating.

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