ADRIANA BARRETO

ADRIANA BARRETO
WHAT A BODY CAN DO
O QUE PODE O CORPO
White Box Art Center | NY
2015
ADRIANA BARRETO
WHAT A BODY CAN DO
O QUE PODE O CORPO
Within the context of Adriana Barreto’s work, our relation with the body meets a multifaceted genealogy
that integrates her ideas on affections, the word, the movement, the rhythm, and the body as a process of
transformation of our relation with the tension of the body’s movement in space. Because they don’t originate exclusively from the thought unit configured by the artist’s main studies in the field of dance, all these
ways of feeling and producing her work are not exhausted in what appears to be translated by the previous
statement, but stem from the necessity of overcoming and reflecting upon the diverse stages of her working
process.
The piece “O que pode um corpo” (What can a body do1), a performance first presented in Cristina Guerra
Contemporary Art, Lisbon, develops its modus operandi, one that returns to itself by exploring other formats presented in the exhibition. Photography, video and a book reveal different degrees of registering and
documental archive while rehabilitating the present relevance of the ideas presented by Baruch Spinoza’s
in his Ethics, a philosophical inquiry on the limits the body as an element that recognizes itself through the
affections it is subjected to.
Quoting Spinoza “The human mind has no knowledge of the body, and does not know it to exist, save
through the ideas of the modifications (affections) whereby the body is affected 2 “. Adriana Barreto doesn’t
intend to confront us with the metaphysical questions advanced by Spinoza’s thought, but she recognizes in
the present relevance of his ideas questions that she herself addresses.(...)
João Silvério
1
The choice to translate “O que pode um corpo” as “What can a body do” was made taking in consideration that this is the most common and
accepted translation of the original sentence in French (qu’est-ce que peut un corps?) whenever in the context of the writings of Baruch Spinoza
and Gilles Deleuze.
2
Ethica, II; Prop. XIX
O QUE PODE UM CORPO #7, 2012
inkjet print on Hahnemüle paper
80 × 120 cm
O QUE PODE UM CORPO #13, 2012
inkjet print on Hahnemüle paper
80 × 120 cm
O QUE PODE UM CORPO #8, 2012
inkjet print on Hahnemüle paper
80 × 120 cm
O QUE PODE UM CORPO #9, 2012
inkjet print on Hahnemüle paper
80 × 120 cm
O QUE PODE UM CORPO #14, 2012
inkjet print on Hahnemüle paper
80 × 120 cm
O QUE PODE UM CORPO #1, 2012
inkjet print on Hahnemüle paper
110 × 110 cm
O QUE PODE UM CORPO #5, 2012
inkjet print on Hahnemüle paper
80 × 120 cm
O QUE PODE UM CORPO #10, 2012
inkjet print on Hahnemüle paper
80 × 120 cm
O QUE PODE UM CORPO #17, 2012
inkjet print on Hahnemüle paper
110 × 165 cm
O QUE PODE UM CORPO #18, 2012
inkjet print on Hahnemüle paper
110 × 165 cm
O QUE PODE UM CORPO #16, 2012
inkjet print on Hahnemüle paper
110 × 165 cm
O QUE PODE UM CORPO #15, 2012
inkjet print on Hahnemüle paper
110 × 165 cm
ADRIANA BARRETO
Main exhibition floor
Techical requirements:
- black walls
- floor entirely covered in black vinyl
- overall lighting
this space will house the performance sessions and resulting drawings ion the floor.
the drawings are to be made in large alcohol white marker with large duration, meaning that the drawings are
to be kept until the end of the show. Consequently the cleaning must be mostly with a mop with little amount
of water. In case parts of the drawing disappear, retouches can be made with the same marker.
Additionally, a selection of color prints will be assembled on the surrounding walls (7x_80x120 cm + 1x_
110x110cm + 4x_110x165cm). please see simulations on the next pages
ADRIANA BARRETO
Basement floor
Techical requirements:
- 1x_ 3D full HD video projector (with 3000Ansi lumens)
- 1x_ HD media player
- HDMI cables
- 2 self-amplified speakers
- RCA cables
- mix table (for volume control)
- soptlights (to be directed to 1 specific wall)
this space will exhibit the 3D video of the series, with surround sound.
A selection of photographs can also be presented in the opposite wall of the video.
please see simulation in the next page