The largest and oldest art event in the world features 13 drawings by Joseca Yanomami and 18 works by André Taniki
Thirty-one works by Yanomami artists will be exhibited at the 60th Venice Art Biennale - the world's oldest and largest art event - from April 20 to November 24, 2024. Titled Foreigners Everywhere, the Biennale features 13 drawings by Joseca Yanomami and 18 works by André Taniki.
Joseca participates in the pre-opening of the event from April 16th to 19th at the invitation of the Venice Biennale itself and with the support of the Hutukara Associação Yanomami (HAY) and Galeria Millan. The edition will give visibility to artists from marginalized groups such as indigenous people, immigrants and refugees.
Taniki was also invited to the Venice Biennale, however, he is over 80 years old and will not be able to attend due to the sensitivity of his age. In addition to being an artist, Taniki is also a shaman who lives in the Upper Catrimani River - a region where the art of drawings was introduced by photographer Claudia Andujar - and who produced most of his works from the 1970s to 1980s.
The artist's participation in the opening of the event is considered fundamental for recognizing his trajectory and for promoting the Yanomami struggle internationally.
“I am very happy on this trip to participate [in the Venice Biennale]. It’s a great happiness”, said Joseca shortly before boarding at the airport in São Paulo bound for Venice.
The drawings that will be part of the exhibition were provided by the São Paulo Museum of Art (MASP), which three years ago acquired 92 works by Joseca and in 2022 held the exhibition “Joseca Yanomami: Our Forest-Land".
The Yanomami artist's repertoire is made up of inspirations from the cosmology of his people, making reference to songs, shamanic myths, the forest, the defense of the territory and dreams.
About Joseca Yanomami
Born in the 1970s, in the Demini region, Yanomami Indigenous Land, and a member of the Watorikɨ community, Joseca is a notable artist of his people. More than two decades ago, he began drawing and carving animals out of wood.
“When I learned to draw, I heard the shamans singing and I recorded it in my head to draw later”, Joseca told ISA in 2021. “I draw relatives, animals, trees, birds, macaws, monkeys, tapirs, fish”.
Joseca is also the first language scholar in his community and was a teacher in Watorikɨ in the early 1990s. Furthermore, he was the first Yanomami to work in the health sector.
History of exhibitions with works by Joseca Yanomami
- Yanomami: The Spirit of the Forest - Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art, Paris, France - 2003
- Summer Stories - Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art, Paris, France - 2012
- Mestizo Stories - Instituto Tomei Ohtake, São Paulo, Brazil - 2014
- We, the Trees - Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art, Paris, France - 2019
- Indigenous Worlds - Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil - 2020
- trees - Power Station of Art / Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art, Shanghai, China - 2021
- Moquém Surari: Contemporary Indigenous Art - São Paulo Museum of Modern Art, Brazil - 2021
- Rooted beings - Wellcome Foundation, London, England - 2022
- The Living - Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art, Lille, France - 2022
- Joseca Yanomami: Our Forest-Land - São Paulo Museum of Art, Assis Chateaubriand, Brazil - 2022
- Brazilian Stories - São Paulo Museum of Art, Assis Chateaubriand, Brazil - 2022
- We are Forest - Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art and Milano Triennale, Italy - 2023