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Favelas As Art

16:00 H | Topics: Arts - Brazil - Housing - Travel

When people travel, housing projects aren't usually part of their itineraries. Just like most people don't seek out their art in housing projects either. The housing projects of Brazil, favelas, are notorious for their violence. Those same favelas ,though, are becoming canvases for art by outsiders.

The open air gallery, where crumbling shacks have become giant canvasses, is the brainchild of Jeroen Koolhaas, a Dutch illustrator who works for New Yorker magazine, and Dre Urhahn, an art director from Amsterdam.

"Normally, outsiders would only come here to buy cocaine," said Mr Urhahn, who admits to having found empty cartridges on the scaffolding used for the painting. "The museum is about giving them another reason to visit the community."

The purpose of the project is unclear. Some residents of the favela have been inspired to paint their own homes and others indicate that they hope that the art project will inspire respect for their "neighborhood".
The artist hopes to inspire the young people in the neighborhood to turn to art instead of crime.

What the Dutch artist and many others fail to recognize is that there are artists coming out of the favelas so long as the definition of art is expanded.

Here in the Big Apple one gallery is displaying Brazilian street art. Through March 17, the Jonathan LeVine Gallery presents Ruas de São Paulo (Streets of São Paulo) featuring the work of 8 street artists in what they are calling "A Survey of Brazilian Street Art.

Via / The Guardian y NYRemezcla

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