Solo, MALDICIDADE 8 

Editor: This intriguing photograph is titled *Solo, MALDICIDADE 8* by Miguel Rio Branco. It depicts a lone vinyl record resting on what looks like rough asphalt. The light is somber, almost mournful. What do you make of it? Curator: This image whispers of cultural memory, doesn't it? Look at the placement of the record – abandoned, almost desecrated on that coarse ground. Vinyl records were once prized objects, vessels of music and emotion. Now, here it is, solitary and seemingly forgotten. The ground becomes symbolic. Does it represent the relentless march of time, indifferent to human creation? Editor: That’s a striking point. The contrast between the smoothness of the record and the harsh ground really stands out now. I guess that tension adds to the feeling of loss. Curator: Precisely. The water seems to erode the artifact while simultaneously creating ethereal reflections on the surface of the disk. Is there an invocation of memory in the reflective glimmers or a distortion or erasure? What do you feel it represents? Editor: That makes me think about how our own memories can become distorted or fade over time. Curator: Exactly. Rio Branco uses these potent symbols – the abandoned record, the indifferent ground – to evoke deeper questions about cultural permanence and individual memory. It's not just a photograph; it's a melancholic poem etched in light. Editor: I see the image in a completely new light. It's sad but also compelling to consider what it represents about how we value—or devalue—objects over time. Thanks! Curator: Indeed. It's in that delicate interplay of image and symbol that the artwork truly speaks.