Black Awareness Month: 5 exhibitions to celebrate black culture in SP

Black Consciousness Day, November 20, only gained notoriety in the 1970s in Brazil due to social movements that demanded racial equality. The date coincides with the death of Zumbi dos Palmares , leader of the Quilombo de Palmares, who was a symbol of struggle and resistance during the period of slavery in the country. To celebrate the achievements and give visibility to the struggle of black people, several exhibitions are spread throughout the capital of São Paulo. Below, we have selected 5 exhibitions in São Paulo that you cannot miss. Plan ahead!

1. From Brazil: black art and thought - Sesc Belenzinho

Dos Brasis – Arte e Pensamento Negro is the most comprehensive exhibition dedicated exclusively to the production of black artists ever held in the country. Starting in 2024, part of the exhibition will be shown in Sesc spaces throughout Brazil for the next 10 years. The idea was born in 2018, a research project resulting from Sesc's institutional desire to learn about, give visibility to and promote Afro-Brazilian production.

2. Karingana – Black presences in children's books - Sesc Bom Retiro

Aimed at children and adults, the exhibition – which runs until January 2024 – presents a selection of contemporary work by black Brazilian artists who dedicate themselves to illustration and illustrated books for children.

3. Antonio Obá: Flight - Art Gallery

Until March 2024, the Museum of Modern Art of São Paulo and the Museu Afro Brasil Emanoel Araujo present the exhibition " Mãos: 35 anos da Mão Afro-Brasileira ", which will be on display simultaneously in both institutions, bringing together paintings, engravings, photographs, sculptures and documents by more than 30 Afro-descendant Brazilian artists, popular, academic, modern and/or contemporary. The exhibition celebrates and revisits the legacy of A Mão Afro-Brasileira , a show held at MAM in 1988 – the year of the centenary of the abolition of slavery – curated by Emanoel Araujo and which marked the history of art in the country.

5. Povoada - Afro Brazil Museum

The daily activities and traditions of black people are the theme of Povoada , a solo exhibition by Diego Mouro , curated by Claudinei Roberto da Silva, at the Museu Afro Brasil Emanoel Araujo. The artist bases his works on research dedicated to the remnants of black cultural formation in Brazil, seeking to represent ancestry in everyday life in an unconventional way.