The proposal for the museography of the 32nd Bienal de São Paulo is based on a few issues posed by the curators and which are essential to its elaboration.
Park
By reflecting on how the gardens and open fields in a park relate and contrast to each other, a premise appears for thinking the architectural project. Similar to a landscape project, in which there are masses of plants, arboreal strata and ground cover plants, the architectural elements of an exhibition space articulate and interrelate with each other, building similar contrasts: elements such as closed projection rooms and walls of varying heights are juxtaposed and articulated in a more or less concentrated form, creating a feasible and desirable landscape; different perspectives and areas that are more or less open define the relationship with the surroundings, creating different possible paths for exploring and superimposing function; living areas and artists’ spaces merge, without defined borders.
Uncertainty, entropy and ambiguity
Faced with the apparent chaos created, spaces arise regardless of any relation to the geometry of the site. Analogous to an entropic system, hierarchical relationships are not established, such as large avenues, back streets and rooms.
This ‘“mayhem” produces spaces that are unexpected and full of surprises. The Bienal Pavilion appears more or less clearly, depending on the situation. Consequently, the artists’ spaces and public areas are sometimes confused and imprinted with a rich and ambiguous character.
Lighting and colors
As a consequence of this occupation, some walls will appear without works. Here, the lighting reinforces this difference. Varying gradients and lighting intensities designate main spaces and those of great interest. Again, just like in the gardens, there are always trees that pose greater or lesser interest and that, therefore, stand out from the whole. The use of colors with low tones and the same chromatic value often confuses itself with the white walls, reinforcing the ambiguous character of this proposal.
Álvaro Razuk