In the times of the “artistic guerrilla” - or the ancient attack on the horrific statue of Borba Gato

Abstract

In one of the urgent moments of Brazilian Culture, through the 60s, the pressure of events compelled some artists to develop an “anti-art” position that generated a series of products that still deserve analysis in recent historiography. This text focuses on barely unknown experiments, largely due to the absence of documentation about them. The M.A.R.D.A., movement created by Rogério Duprat and Décio Pignatari, the “Artistic Guerrilla Theory” and the “Produssumo” (Pignatari’s concept and text) as well as the advent of Happenings seem to have produced a combat culture ambience that is truly stimulating. We know what resulted from this, but we still know little about its elaboration.