Cinema II 1972

Editor: So, here we have Sa Nogueira’s "Cinema II" from 1972, a mixed-media collage that has such a surreal quality to it! It feels like you’re looking into someone’s dream or a half-remembered movie. What strikes you most about this piece? Curator: The theatricality is immediately apparent, isn't it? We have figures seemingly pulled from different eras, presented as if on a stage, maybe a commentary on the theater itself. How the “high” and “low” art are treated together is very intersting too: there is a real dialogue between figuration and representation within the cultural politics of that era. What do you notice about how Nogueira is manipulating images from mass media? Editor: The cut-and-paste aesthetic definitely gives it that rebellious, anti-establishment feel, I think. Were artists using collage in this way to sort of challenge what was considered fine art at the time? Curator: Precisely! The collage as a medium allowed artists to disrupt traditional notions of authorship and originality. In the political climate of the early 70s, what kind of statements might an artist like Nogueira have been trying to make? Editor: Well, there's definitely a sense of fragmentation...Maybe it's a reflection of a fractured society or a questioning of dominant narratives, like in cinema? And maybe the work challenges gender roles... Curator: Exactly! It makes you think about how these mass-produced images affect us, the viewers, as well as society as a whole. I never quite grasped the layers of the work until now. Editor: Me neither. Thank you for elucidating the socio-political commentary imbedded in this artwork!