Exhibition "Affective Joints" by Isabel Becker

The photographer from Rio de Janeiro Isabel Becker opens the exhibition Affective Joints, at  Brasilia Art Museum (MAB)Curated by Cecília Fortes, the exhibition brings together works that use memory as a starting point to construct a perspective on Brazilian cultural aesthetics.

The project stems from the artist's earliest affective memories. The initial references come from the tile patterns found in kitchens and bathrooms, everyday spaces marked by simplicity and the repetition of graphic patterns very characteristic of Brazil between the 1950s and 1970s. These are images linked to past memories, which remain as a reference in the artist's new work.

When revisiting his own collection, Isabel She notices the recurring presence of these tiles in her photographs. From this observation, she begins a research project that starts from the intimate and moves towards a broader investigation into the permanence of this aesthetic over time. The artist begins to search for these traces in houses and environments that still preserve these patterns, connecting personal memory and collective history.

This journey leads to an encounter with modernist architecture in Brazil. During the construction of Brasília, art and architecture began to integrate more directly, incorporating tiles as part of the designs. References such as Le Corbusier and Lúcio Costa helped to consolidate this thinking, which found expression in the facades, pilotis, and public spaces of the city.

In her works, the artist draws inspiration from panels and drawings associated with figures such as Athos Bulcão, Marcílio Mendes, and Marcelo Campelo. These elements appear reorganized in photographs that blend observation and scene construction. The images are presented in diptychs and triptychs measuring 42 x 50 cm, reinforcing the repetition and rhythm present in the tilework.

Em Affective Joints, Isabel Becker The artist uses these elements in her work through photography. She explores repetition, color, and composition, creating images that oscillate between recording and constructing. "Each image tells some kind of story: family, affections, and heritage," she states. Elsewhere, she reinforces this point: "In the repetition of the images, I invite reflection on the preservation of our history, and sustainability, which is no longer a choice, but the only path."

The exhibition's layout follows this line of thought and is inspired by the logic of the panels, proposing an occupation of space that dialogues with the architecture. "Rejuntes Afetivos dialogues with the architecture and leads us to imaginary spaces, a look inward," he summarizes.

Through photography, the project proposes a contemporary interpretation of this heritage, not only documenting it but also visually reactivating these tiles as a living memory of an aesthetic and cultural ideal that remains in everyday urban life.

With a solid career in photography, including work for O Globo and magazines published by Editora Abril, Isabel Becker Since 2011, she has been developing an original research project marked by the use of color and the construction of images that move between the real and the imaginary. Throughout her career, she has held solo exhibitions and participated in important shows in Brazil and abroad, notably presentations at the Grand Palais in Paris, as well as editions of ArtRio. In 2023, she presented the exhibition Light in the shadow to the Cultural Space of the Public Prosecutor's Office in Brasília, reinforcing its relationship with the city. In 2024, it participated in group exhibitions in São Paulo and returned to present the series in institutions in Rio de Janeiro and Brasília.

The exhibition has the support of Athos Bulcao Foundation e Ema Klabin House Museum.

Service
Exhibition | Affective Joints
From June 13th to August 30th
Every day except Tuesday, from 10 am to 19 pm.