Arte Eletrônica Indígena (Electronic Indigenous Art)

The Arte Electrônica Indígena (AEI) project was designed and executed by the NGO Thydêwá. It consisted of a series of ten short artistic residencies in indigenous communities in the Brazilian Northeast in order to co-create works of electronic art. These were exhibited to the public at the Museum of Modern Art, Salvador da Bahia, in August 2018 and have since toured the indigenous communities themselves.

The participating artists came from Brazil, Bolivia and the United Kingdom, and the indigenous communities are those that make up the network of indigenous “points of culture” with which the NGO works. The purpose of the project was to stimulate intercultural exchange through artistic cocreation between indigenous and non-indigenous people, to reduce prejudices on all sides through collaboration, and to challenge mainstream perceptions of indigenous peoples as “traditional” or “backward,” and therefore not capable of engaging with new, high-tech forms of art.

The resultant artworks marry the concerns and practices of the indigenous communities with electronic and digital technologies to produce highly original results. The strong interactive dimension to many of the works demands that the spectator engage with them, thus breaking down prejudices in the gallery setting also.

Three of the most engaging works of electronic art presented were:

• The Earth that is Us, Bruno Gomes and the Karapotó Plak-ô community,  digital body painting.
• The Voice of the Sea, Óscar Octavio “Ukumari” and the Pataxó de Barra Velha community, electronic sound art with found materials.
• Pulsation, Aruma – Sandra de Berduccy and the Camacã Imboré/Tupinambá community, electronic textile art.

PULSATION

Aruma – Sandra de Berduccy (BO), Maria Selma Batista Ferreira (BR), Camacã Imboré/Tupinambá Indigenous community, Bahia (BR)

The three textile works that comprise *Pulsation* combine traditional knowledge, processes and materials such as reeds, thread and feathers, with unusual materials such as fiber-optic cable and LEDs to offer a poetic approach to Indigenous culture.

The Earth that Is Us

Bruno Gomes (BR), Karapotó Plak-ô Indigenous community, Alagoas (BR)

An extension of the concept of body painting with the use of technology that opens the door to new experiences and new conversations. Participants drew the elements present in their natural environment which were then animated and projected onto their bodies.

THE VOICE OF THE SEA

Óscar Octavio “Ukumari” (BO), Pataxó de Barra Velha Indigenous community, Porto Seguro, Bahia (BR)

An interactive sonic landscape. By means of a contact-sensitive fishing net, visitors are transported to the seashore where they can compose music with the nature and stories of the Pataxó Indigenous community.

Project Credits

The AEI project was designed by the NGO Thydêwá.
Core project team: 

• Sebastián Gerlic (AR), director of Thydêwá, project coordinator, curator
• Tiago Tao (BR), executive producer, curator
• Anna Campagnac (BR), local production, coordinator for collective processes
• Helder C Jr (BR), graphic designer, website 
• Thea Pitman (UK), international curator

Artists and Indigenous communities:

• Bruno Gomes, Mulungu, Ceará, Brazil, and the Karapotó Plak-ô community, São Sebastião, Alagoas; http://www.brunogomes.art      
• Óscar Octavio ‘Ukumari’, Santa Cruz de La Sierra, Bolivia, and the Pataxó de Barra Velha community, Porto Seguro, Bahia; https://www.ozzoukumari.com 
• Aruma – Sandra de Berduccy, Cochabamba, Bolivia, and the Camacã Imboré community, Aldeia do Cachimbo, Bahia;
  http://www.e-aruma.net  & http://www.sandradeberduccy.com

• Thydêwá is a non-governmental organisation that runs programs, projects and campaigns to raise awareness of discrimination against indigenous people and promote a culture of peace. It was founded in 2002 by indigenous people from different ethnic groups in the Brazilian Northeast working together with non-indigenous people. Thydêwá uses intercultural dialogue to promote dignity and wellbeing for all. It has also garnered a very strong track record for encouraging critical appropriation of new technologies by indigenous communities, particularly through the ethnojournalist platform Indios Online set up in 2004.

Website:

• http://aei.art.br/