The unprecedented installation by artist
André Komatsu at the
Pinacoteca de São Paulo provokes visitors to reflect on privilege and social inequality in Brazil. Located in the central space of the museum, the Octagon, the installation
Noite Longa will be open to the public starting this Saturday, the 28th August, from 10am to 6pm.
In the work, the artist seeks
to work with the ideas of control, possibility and restriction . Thus, 51 four-meter-high steel spears were installed throughout the Octagon floor, which received a special coating of iron plates. Positioned at a distance of 150 centimeters from each other, the spears convey a pattern of order and hostility, characterizing a
space where it is impossible to move freely .
At the ends of the spears, objects such as books, bags of soil, stacked coins, paper money, gold leaf and bottles of water can be found. The items symbolize goods that, although they should be guaranteed as basic rights, remain
inaccessible to much of the population. population , especially in contexts of crisis and worsening social inequalities.
Power relations and social conflicts permeate the works of
Komatsu , an artist from São Paulo who grew up with the return of democracy in Brazil and saw neoliberalism implemented by economic policies in the 1990s. It is in this context that he develops his work. The work is part of the traditional
Octagon Contemporary Art Project , an initiative created in 2003 that presents contemporary art productions commissioned by the museum. Over the course of these 18 years, the project has presented around 40
site specifics by Brazilian and foreign artists, including names such as
Ana Maria Tavares ,
Artur Lescher ,
Carla Zaccagnini ,
Carlito Carvalhosa ,
Joana Vasconcelos ,
João Loureiro ,
José Spaniol ,
Laura Vinci ,
Laura Lima ,
Regina Silveira ,
Rubens Mano ,
Jorge Pardo , among others.
"Long Night" service, installation by André Komatsu
Date: August 28th to November 8th, 2021
Location: Octagon of the São Paulo Pinacoteca
Opening hours: Wednesday to Monday, 10am to 6pm Tickets with time reservation at
https://www.pinacoteca.org.br 
