𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘋𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘻𝘦𝘴 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵, 2025
Billboard Installation - FLUCC Vienna
Inspired by Woody Guthrie’s historic phrase — “This machine kills fascists,” inscribed on his guitar as an act of symbolic resistance — Ana Paula Franco’s installation calls for a contemporary reinterpretation of that gesture. By suggesting that a “spell” can decolonize thought, the phrase evokes a rupture with the colonial paradigms that repress ancestral knowledge and practices, inviting the public to reimagine worlds and possibilities through the listening of other times, other knowledges, and other alliances.
𝘌𝘴𝘵𝘦 𝘍𝘦𝘪𝘵𝘪ç𝘰 𝘋𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘻𝘢 𝘰 𝘗𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘰
Inspirada pela frase histórica de Woody Guthrie — “This machine kills fascists”, inscrita em seu violão como um ato de resistência simbólica —, a instalação de Ana Paula Franco propõe uma reinterpretação contemporânea desse gesto. Ao sugerir que um “feitiço” possa descolonizar o pensamento, a frase evoca uma ruptura com os paradigmas coloniais que reprimem saberes e práticas ancestrais, convidando o público a reimaginar mundos e possibilidades por meio da escuta de outros tempos, outros conhecimentos e outras alianças.
𝘌𝘴𝘵𝘦 𝘏𝘦𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘻𝘰 𝘋𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘻𝘢 𝘦𝘭 𝘗𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘰
Inspirada en la histórica frase de Woody Guthrie – “This machine kills fascists,” inscrita en su guitarra como un acto de resistencia simbólica – la instalación de Ana Paula Franco aboga por una reinterpretación contemporánea de ese gesto. Al sugerir que un “hechizo” puede decolonizar el pensamiento, la frase evoca una ruptura con los paradigmas coloniales que reprimen los saberes y prácticas ancestrales, invitando al público a reimaginar mundos y posibilidades a través de la escucha de otros tiempos, otros saberes y otras alianzas.
𝘋𝘪𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘳 𝘡𝘢𝘶𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘋𝘦𝘬𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘦𝘳𝘵 𝘥𝘢𝘴 𝘋𝘦𝘯𝘬𝘦𝘯
Ausgehend von Woody Guthries berühmter Inschrift “This machine kills fascists” versteht Ana Paula Francos Installation den „Zauber“ als künstlerisches Werkzeug gegen koloniale Paradigmen. Die Arbeit lädt dazu ein, verdrängte Wissensformen neu zu hören und gemeinsame Zukünfte zu entwerfen.
Poetics of Resistance
last exhibition @braeuhausgasse31
9th - 10th August from 4pm to 9pm
Bräuhausgasse 31, 1050 Vienna
In the Brazilian cultural context, we have the so-called Simpatias, which are a kind of ritualistic spell passed on orally from generation to generation, designed to either attract or to ward off something. They can involve anything from the use of plants to evoke protection to the “removal” of a memory of a fright.
The Simpatia that inspired the photograph titled Ela (Her) 2016, is called Tirar o susto (To remove a fright). The image shows a pair of hands holding a paraffin wax object.
This spell was used by my mother whenever she noticed some kind of abrupt change in the behavior of the children in our family. She would often use melted candle wax to “capture” the mental image of something that possibly scared the child, which she believed was responsible for the tantrums.
To do so, she would pour melted paraffin in a plate with water, while holding the dish near the child’s head. Once the wax had again solidified, she would hold the object up to the light, as if it were a photographic negative film, and carefully examine it until the supposed image of what had caused the fright was found.
What connects my artistic work to this kind of ritualistic spell is the cultural values they had to offer: a plant is just a plant, but in the collective imagination of a people, it can also be a symbol of resistance. An amorphous wax object remains an object, but in my mom’s poetic imagination, it also worked as a healing device for my childhood fears.
@extrapirate
#simpatia #mandinga #paraffinwax #spells #digitalphotography #poetics #resistencia
In the exhibition Feitiço, Ana Paula Franco talks about the correlations between rituals and the artistic process. The word “feitiço” in Portuguese, particularly from Brazil, translates to spell or enchantment. Often regarded as a form of ritual, a spell also involves a series of actions performed to achieve a specific goal, like in the making of an artwork. Despite the significant differences between both practices, it is the commonalities among them that inspire Ana Paula’s work and the dialogue they are set out to engage in: about how cultural processes have the potential to transform things as they are.
Full text: link in bio
Opening: Fri 03/05 19h with @matiasjulioc at the turntables!
Exhibition: Sat 04/05 + Sun 05/05 15-18h
Studio 45
Wendenstraße 45c, 20097 Hamburg
@wendenstrasse45
Looking forward to seeing you all tomorrow!!! 🖤
Opening 5 September
from 17:00 to 22:00
Exhibition from 6 to 23 September 2023
Opening times:
Wed - Fri 15:30 - 18:30
Sat 15:00 - 20:00
and by appointment (dm)
Kunstraum Feller
Kaiserstraße 54
1070 Vienna
It is with great pleasure and joy that I invite you to visit my first solo exhibition, which is the result of a transformative collaboration with the amazing artist, researcher and curator - but for me above all a lifelong best friend - Orlando Vieira Francisco.
Hope to see you there!
Opening next Tuesday, September 5th from 5pm on
Kunstraum Feller
Kaiserstraße 54, 1070 Vienna
Exhibition from 6 to 23 September
Opening times:
Wed - Fri 3:30pm - 6:30pm
Sat 3pm - 8pm
and by appointment (dm me)
#inbetween #exhibition #opening #viennaopening #visualart #photography #digitalart #memory #darkness #anapaulaf
