Brazil is going through a dark period, marked by violent attacks on democratic values and the dismantling of the rule of law. In this context, Casa do Povo is responding to an urgent call—driven by the need to take a stand and act. Born from an initiative by Renata Lucas and the group of artists gathered here, this exhibition-manifesto stands in defiance against the indifference toward the state of emergency we are experiencing, summoning the power of art to reshape our times and challenge our context.

Produced in just a few weeks, the exhibition has mobilized a network of Brazilian and international artists. In addition to the artists mentioned above, it is also worth noting other artists who have shown solidarity with the initiative but do not yet have works installed in the exhibition, such as Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, Iran do Espírito Santo, and Micol Assael. The exhibition is an ongoing process; therefore, the list of works is still evolving. It is merely a starting point. The exhibition has an opening date, with the works already on display, but others may be added in the coming weeks, as we navigate an uncertain future.

Introduction by Renata Lucas

“rejuvenesça!” is a manifesto exhibition, organized by artists and driven by the urgency to respond to an extremely grave situation currently unfolding in Brazil.

Over the past two years, we have witnessed a series of democratic breakdowns and the consequent establishment of a state of emergency in the country, leading to setbacks in civil, social, and labor rights; we have witnessed the curtailment of human rights, with the intensification of the genocide of Black youth, the LGBT community, Indigenous peoples, and Quilombolas. The assassination of Rio de Janeiro City Councilwoman Marielle Franco in March of this year followed a string of deaths of social movement leaders in both urban and rural areas. The candidate who received the most votes in the first round of the presidential election espouses a fascist rhetoric, whose main platform is to revive one of the darkest chapters in our history: the Brazilian civil-military dictatorship (1964–1985). Meanwhile, one of Latin America’s greatest popular leaders remains imprisoned following a politically motivated legal proceeding.

The current edition of the São Paulo Biennial, like many art institutions and galleries, has sought to remain neutral in the face of this barbarism, acting as if nothing were happening around it. In contrast to this cynical indifference, we—the artists presenting here—have created an exhibition that has received the support of Casa do Povo, a democratic space that views art as a critical tool within a process of social transformation.

“rejuvenesça!” is the closing line of a labyrinthine poem by Ferreira Gullar. A poem embodied in an installation created in partnership with Hélio Oiticica, in which a cubic architectural module was built to be entered; inside, the visitor would find another cube, which, when removed, would reveal yet another cube, and another, and so on, until the removal of the last cube would reveal the phrase written on a piece of paper. We set out from the inside out, clinging to the path, sifting through successive ruins, to recover some trace of a beginning.