Born in 1964 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazilian artist Ernesto Neto believes that his works should be entered, inhabited, felt, and even smelled, thereby allowing spectators to experience their own bodies, senses, and minds through art. In Neto’s words: “Our commonalities are more important than our differences. I am interested in discussing the situation of humanity, the temperature of the things we experience. The transit of things. Language.” Consequently, he explores the common aspects of human relations through sculptures that give rise to sensuality and corporeality.

This show, developed in close collaboration with Neto, features a broad selection of his creations from the late 1980s to the present day, some of which have been reworked to reflect the artist’s new ideas and desires, adapted to fit the architectural spaces of the museum. The exhibition has been conceived as a journey that allows visitors to feel the artist’s work and essence, an experience of smells, colors, emotions, languages, and sensory happenings. For Neto, an exhibition is a place of poetry where visitors can escape from the daily grind: “We are constantly receiving information, but I want this to be a place where we stop thinking, where we take refuge in art. I think that not thinking is healthy; it’s like breathing life itself.”

The journey begins in the museum atrium and continues along the second floor. Each gallery offers viewers a different experience, calling for a different pace of contemplation or interaction. The concept that underpins and links the various spaces together is “nature as an instructor of art.” The exhibition offers visitors an opportunity to approach the artworks in new ways and observe how their bodies can be transformed by landscapes.

The artist encourages interaction with the majority of his works, which can be walked through, felt, or touched. Like the human body, however, the pieces are fragile and must be treated with the utmost care and sensitivity, and access to certain galleries will be limited. We also ask that you follow all of the instructions posted in the exhibition in order to better experience and fully enjoy the works without compromising their future preservation. Some works and spaces within the show will be made even more dynamic by the presence of educators at designated times of the day, acting on Neto’s instructions to help visitors interact with his work.

*image (left)
Ernesto Neto,
Drum (Tambor), 2010.
Crochet, volcanic rock, piano, river rocks, Afro-Brazilian drums and snare drum
380 x 1.000 x 1.000 cm.
Collection of the artist © Ernesto Neto.
View of the installation at the Museum of Modern Art in São Paulo, 2010.
Photo: Everton Ballardin