Ninety one names, with two duos and one artist collective, are the artists announced for the 34th Bienal – Faz Escuro mas eu canto (Though it’s dark, still I sing) de São Paulo. The main theoretical focus is in the meaning of “relations” as possible and future element to unite.
Started on February 2020, it has been unfolding in space and in time with both physical and online programming and will culminate in the group show that will occupy the entire Ciccillo Matarazzo Pavilion from September 2021, concomitantly with dozens of solo shows at partner institutions in the city of São Paulo.
Among this edition’s participating artists, there are representatives from all continents. There is a balanced distribution between women and men, with participation from artists who identify as non-binary. This edition will also have the largest representation of indigenous artists, with 9 participants from original peoples of different parts of the globe.
Jacopo Crivelli Visconti, the 34th Bienal’s chief curator, comments on the process of constructing the list of invited artists: “Since its conception, and with an even greater sense of urgency after the developments in recent months, the 34th Bienal seeks to establish bridges between artworks and artists that reflect multiple cosmovisions, cultures and historical moments. The process of putting all of these voices into relation and resonance was intense and stimulating, in keeping with one of the concepts of Édouard Glissant which greatly inspired us along this path: that we are always talking and writing in the presence of all the world’s languages”.
34th Bienal de São Paulo – Though it’s dark, still I sing
Exhibition Though it’s dark, still I sing
4 September – 5 December 2021
Ciccillo Matarazzo Pavilion, Parque Ibirapuera, São Paulo, Brazil
by Alain Chivilò
Abel Rodríguez
1944, Cahuinarí region, Colombia
Adrián Balseca
1989, Quito, Ecuador
Also on show at partner institution: Museu da Cidade de São Paulo: Casa do Caxingui (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Alfredo Jaar
1956, Santiago, Chile
Also on show at partner institution: Sesc Pompeia (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Alice Shintani
1971, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Amie Siegel
1974, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Ana Adamović
1974, Belgrade, Serbia
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Andrea Fraser
1965, Billings, Montana, USA
Anna-Bella Papp
1988, Chișineu-Criș, Romania
Antonio Dias
1944, Campina Grande, PB, Brazil – 2018, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020) and at partner institution: Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo (MAM São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Antonio Vega Macotela
1979, Mexico City, Mexico
Arjan Martins
1960, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
Beatriz Santiago Muñoz
1972, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Also on show at partner institution: Pivô Arte e Pesquisa (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Belkis Ayón
1967 – 1999, Havana, Cuba
Carmela Gross
1946, São Paulo, Brasil
Christoforos Savva
1924, Marathovounos, Cyprus – 1968, Sheffield, UK
Clara Ianni
1987, São Paulo, Brasil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Claude Cahun
1894, Nantes, France – 1954, Saint Helier, Jersey
Daiara Tukano
1982, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Daniel de Paula
1987, Brazilian, born in Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Darcy Lange
1946, Urenui, New Zealand – 2005, Auckland, New Zealand
Deana Lawson
1979, Rochester, New York, USA
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020) and at partner institution: Kunsthalle Basel (Basel, Switzerland)
Dirk Braeckman
1958, Eeklo, Belgium
E.B. Itso
1977, Copenhagen, Denmark
Edurne Rubio
1974, Burgos, Spain
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Eleonora Fabião
1968, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
Eleonore Koch
1926 – 2018, Berlin, Germany
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Éric Baudelaire
1973, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
Frida Orupabo
1986, Sarpsborg, Norway
Also on show at partner institution: Museu Afro Brasil (São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Gala Porras-Kim
1984, Bogotá, Colombia
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Giorgio Griffa
1936, Turin, Italy
Giorgio Morandi
1890 – 1964, Bologna, Italy
Also on show at partner institution: Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil (CCBB São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Grace Passô
1980, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil
Also on show at partner institution: Novas Frequências Festival (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Guan Xiao
1983, Chongqing, China
Gustavo Caboco
1989, Curitiba, PR, Brazil
Hanni Kamaly
1988, Hamar, Norway
Haris Epaminondav 1980, Nicosia, Cyprus
Hsu Che-Yu
1985, Taipei, Taiwan
Jacqueline Nova
1935 – 1975, Gante, Belgium
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Jaider Esbell
1979, Normandia, RR, Brazil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020) and at partner institution: Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo (MAM São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Jaune Quick-to-See Smith
1940, Flathead Reserve, Montana, USA
Joan Jonas
1936, New York, New York, USA
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020) and at partner institution: Pinacoteca de São Paulo / Estação (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Jota Mombaça
1991, Natal, RN, Brazil
Also on show at partner institution: Centro Cultural São Paulo (CCSP, São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Jungjin Lee
1961, Daegu, South Korea
Juraci Dórea
1944, Feira de Santana, BA, Brazil
Also on show at partner institution: Museu Brasileiro da Escultura e Ecologia (MuBE, São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Kelly Sinnapah Mary
1981, Guadeloupe, France
Koki Tanaka
1975, Kyoto, Japan
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Lasar Segall
1889, Vilnius, Lithuania – São Paulo, SP, Brazil, 1957
Also on show at partner institution: Museu Lasar Segall (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Lawrence Abu Hamdan
1985, Amman, Jordan
Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry
1936, Kendal, Jamaica
León Ferrari
1920 – 2013, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Lothar Baumgarten
1944, Rheinsberg, Germany – 2018, Berlin, Germany
Luisa Cunha
1949, Lisbon, Portugal
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Lydia Ourahmane
1992, Saïda, Argelia
Lygia Pape
1927, Nova Friburgo, RJ, Brazil – Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil, 2004
Manthia Diawara
1953, Bamako, Mali
Also on show at partner institution: Amant Foundation (New York City, NY, USA)
Mariana Caló and Francisco Queimadela
1984, Viana do Castelo, Portugal and 1985, Coimbra, Portugal
Marissa Lee Benedict and David Rueter
1985, Palm Springs, California, USA and 1978, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
Marinella Senatore
1977, Cava de’ Tirreni, Italy
Mauro Restiffe
1970, São José do Rio Pardo, SP, Brazil
Melvin Moti
1977, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Mette Edvardsen
1970, Lørenskog, Norway
Nalini Malani
1946, Karachi, Pakistan
Naomi Rincón Gallardo
1979, Mexico City, Mexico
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Neo Muyanga
1974, Soweto, South Africa
Also with performance at the Bienal Pavilion (2020), and on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020) and at the Liverpool Biennial (Liverpool, UK)
Nina Beier
1975, Aarhus, Dinamarca
Noa Eshkol
1924, Kibbutz Degania Bet, Palestine – Holon, Israel, 2007
Also on show at partner institution: Casa do Povo (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Musa Michelle Mattiuzzi
1983, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Olivia Plender
1977, London, UK
Oscar Tuazón
1975, Seattle, Washington, USA
Paulo Kapela
1947, Uige, Angola –- 2020, Luanda, Angola
Paulo Nazareth
1977, Governador Valadares, MG, Brazil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Philipp Fleischmann
1985, Hollabrunn, Austria
Pia Arke
1958, Ittoqqortoormiit, Greenland – 2007, Copenhagen, Denmark
Pierre Verger
1902, Paris, France – 1996, Salvador, BA, Brazil
Also on show at partner institution: Instituto Tomie Ohtake (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Regina Silveira
1939, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020) and at partner institution: Museu de Arte Contemporânea da Universidade de São Paulo (MAC USP, São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Roger Bernat
1968, Barcelona, Spain
Sebastián Calfuqueo Aliste
1991, Santiago, Chile
Silke Otto-Knapp
1970, Osnabrück, Germany
Sueli Maxakali
1976, Santa Helena de Minas, MG, Brazil
Sung Tieu
1987, Hai Duong, Vietnam
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Tamara Henderson
1982, Sackville, Canada
Tony Cokes
1956, Richmond, Virginia, USA
Trajal Harrell
1973, Douglas, Georgia, USA
Also on show at partner institution: Instituto Bardi / Casa de Vidro (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Uýra
1991, Manaus, AM, Brazil
Victor Anicet
1938, Marigot, Saint Martin
Vincent Meessen
1971, Belgian, born in Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Ximena Garrido-Lecca
1980, Lima, Peru
Also on a individual exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion (2020), and on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Yuko Mohri
1980, Kanagawa, Japan
Also on show at partner institution: Japan House São Paulo (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Yuyachkani
Theatrical group founded in 1971, Peru
Zina Saro-Wiwa
1976, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
Zózimo Bulbul
1937 – 2013, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
Started on February 2020, it has been unfolding in space and in time with both physical and online programming and will culminate in the group show that will occupy the entire Ciccillo Matarazzo Pavilion from September 2021, concomitantly with dozens of solo shows at partner institutions in the city of São Paulo.
Among this edition’s participating artists, there are representatives from all continents. There is a balanced distribution between women and men, with participation from artists who identify as non-binary. This edition will also have the largest representation of indigenous artists, with 9 participants from original peoples of different parts of the globe.
Jacopo Crivelli Visconti, the 34th Bienal’s chief curator, comments on the process of constructing the list of invited artists: “Since its conception, and with an even greater sense of urgency after the developments in recent months, the 34th Bienal seeks to establish bridges between artworks and artists that reflect multiple cosmovisions, cultures and historical moments. The process of putting all of these voices into relation and resonance was intense and stimulating, in keeping with one of the concepts of Édouard Glissant which greatly inspired us along this path: that we are always talking and writing in the presence of all the world’s languages”.
34th Bienal de São Paulo – Though it’s dark, still I sing
Exhibition Though it’s dark, still I sing
4 September – 5 December 2021
Ciccillo Matarazzo Pavilion, Parque Ibirapuera, São Paulo, Brazil
by Alain Chivilò
Abel Rodríguez
1944, Cahuinarí region, Colombia
Adrián Balseca
1989, Quito, Ecuador
Also on show at partner institution: Museu da Cidade de São Paulo: Casa do Caxingui (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Alfredo Jaar
1956, Santiago, Chile
Also on show at partner institution: Sesc Pompeia (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Alice Shintani
1971, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Amie Siegel
1974, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Ana Adamović
1974, Belgrade, Serbia
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Andrea Fraser
1965, Billings, Montana, USA
Anna-Bella Papp
1988, Chișineu-Criș, Romania
Antonio Dias
1944, Campina Grande, PB, Brazil – 2018, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020) and at partner institution: Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo (MAM São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Antonio Vega Macotela
1979, Mexico City, Mexico
Arjan Martins
1960, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
Beatriz Santiago Muñoz
1972, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Also on show at partner institution: Pivô Arte e Pesquisa (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Belkis Ayón
1967 – 1999, Havana, Cuba
Carmela Gross
1946, São Paulo, Brasil
Christoforos Savva
1924, Marathovounos, Cyprus – 1968, Sheffield, UK
Clara Ianni
1987, São Paulo, Brasil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Claude Cahun
1894, Nantes, France – 1954, Saint Helier, Jersey
Daiara Tukano
1982, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Daniel de Paula
1987, Brazilian, born in Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Darcy Lange
1946, Urenui, New Zealand – 2005, Auckland, New Zealand
Deana Lawson
1979, Rochester, New York, USA
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020) and at partner institution: Kunsthalle Basel (Basel, Switzerland)
Dirk Braeckman
1958, Eeklo, Belgium
E.B. Itso
1977, Copenhagen, Denmark
Edurne Rubio
1974, Burgos, Spain
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Eleonora Fabião
1968, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
Eleonore Koch
1926 – 2018, Berlin, Germany
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Éric Baudelaire
1973, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
Frida Orupabo
1986, Sarpsborg, Norway
Also on show at partner institution: Museu Afro Brasil (São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Gala Porras-Kim
1984, Bogotá, Colombia
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Giorgio Griffa
1936, Turin, Italy
Giorgio Morandi
1890 – 1964, Bologna, Italy
Also on show at partner institution: Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil (CCBB São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Grace Passô
1980, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil
Also on show at partner institution: Novas Frequências Festival (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Guan Xiao
1983, Chongqing, China
Gustavo Caboco
1989, Curitiba, PR, Brazil
Hanni Kamaly
1988, Hamar, Norway
Haris Epaminondav 1980, Nicosia, Cyprus
Hsu Che-Yu
1985, Taipei, Taiwan
Jacqueline Nova
1935 – 1975, Gante, Belgium
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Jaider Esbell
1979, Normandia, RR, Brazil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020) and at partner institution: Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo (MAM São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Jaune Quick-to-See Smith
1940, Flathead Reserve, Montana, USA
Joan Jonas
1936, New York, New York, USA
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020) and at partner institution: Pinacoteca de São Paulo / Estação (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Jota Mombaça
1991, Natal, RN, Brazil
Also on show at partner institution: Centro Cultural São Paulo (CCSP, São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Jungjin Lee
1961, Daegu, South Korea
Juraci Dórea
1944, Feira de Santana, BA, Brazil
Also on show at partner institution: Museu Brasileiro da Escultura e Ecologia (MuBE, São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Kelly Sinnapah Mary
1981, Guadeloupe, France
Koki Tanaka
1975, Kyoto, Japan
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Lasar Segall
1889, Vilnius, Lithuania – São Paulo, SP, Brazil, 1957
Also on show at partner institution: Museu Lasar Segall (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Lawrence Abu Hamdan
1985, Amman, Jordan
Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry
1936, Kendal, Jamaica
León Ferrari
1920 – 2013, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Lothar Baumgarten
1944, Rheinsberg, Germany – 2018, Berlin, Germany
Luisa Cunha
1949, Lisbon, Portugal
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Lydia Ourahmane
1992, Saïda, Argelia
Lygia Pape
1927, Nova Friburgo, RJ, Brazil – Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil, 2004
Manthia Diawara
1953, Bamako, Mali
Also on show at partner institution: Amant Foundation (New York City, NY, USA)
Mariana Caló and Francisco Queimadela
1984, Viana do Castelo, Portugal and 1985, Coimbra, Portugal
Marissa Lee Benedict and David Rueter
1985, Palm Springs, California, USA and 1978, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
Marinella Senatore
1977, Cava de’ Tirreni, Italy
Mauro Restiffe
1970, São José do Rio Pardo, SP, Brazil
Melvin Moti
1977, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Mette Edvardsen
1970, Lørenskog, Norway
Nalini Malani
1946, Karachi, Pakistan
Naomi Rincón Gallardo
1979, Mexico City, Mexico
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Neo Muyanga
1974, Soweto, South Africa
Also with performance at the Bienal Pavilion (2020), and on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020) and at the Liverpool Biennial (Liverpool, UK)
Nina Beier
1975, Aarhus, Dinamarca
Noa Eshkol
1924, Kibbutz Degania Bet, Palestine – Holon, Israel, 2007
Also on show at partner institution: Casa do Povo (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Musa Michelle Mattiuzzi
1983, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Olivia Plender
1977, London, UK
Oscar Tuazón
1975, Seattle, Washington, USA
Paulo Kapela
1947, Uige, Angola –- 2020, Luanda, Angola
Paulo Nazareth
1977, Governador Valadares, MG, Brazil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Philipp Fleischmann
1985, Hollabrunn, Austria
Pia Arke
1958, Ittoqqortoormiit, Greenland – 2007, Copenhagen, Denmark
Pierre Verger
1902, Paris, France – 1996, Salvador, BA, Brazil
Also on show at partner institution: Instituto Tomie Ohtake (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Regina Silveira
1939, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020) and at partner institution: Museu de Arte Contemporânea da Universidade de São Paulo (MAC USP, São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Roger Bernat
1968, Barcelona, Spain
Sebastián Calfuqueo Aliste
1991, Santiago, Chile
Silke Otto-Knapp
1970, Osnabrück, Germany
Sueli Maxakali
1976, Santa Helena de Minas, MG, Brazil
Sung Tieu
1987, Hai Duong, Vietnam
Also on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Tamara Henderson
1982, Sackville, Canada
Tony Cokes
1956, Richmond, Virginia, USA
Trajal Harrell
1973, Douglas, Georgia, USA
Also on show at partner institution: Instituto Bardi / Casa de Vidro (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Uýra
1991, Manaus, AM, Brazil
Victor Anicet
1938, Marigot, Saint Martin
Vincent Meessen
1971, Belgian, born in Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Ximena Garrido-Lecca
1980, Lima, Peru
Also on a individual exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion (2020), and on show at Vento [Wind] (exhibition at the Bienal Pavilion, 2020)
Yuko Mohri
1980, Kanagawa, Japan
Also on show at partner institution: Japan House São Paulo (São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
Yuyachkani
Theatrical group founded in 1971, Peru
Zina Saro-Wiwa
1976, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
Zózimo Bulbul
1937 – 2013, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil