Rivane Neuenschwander, Joe Carioca

The current installation in the Museum's New Media Series features Joe Carioca, an animated film by Rivane Neuenschwander (Brazilian, born 1967). Neuenschwander's diverse body of work, which includes drawings, films, and sculptural installations, explores intersections between cultures and the ways our hopes and dreams take material form.

As part of her research for Currents 93: Rivane Neuenschwander, which was on view at the Museum from December 2004 through March 2005, the artist conducted a workshop with St. Louis school children. During the workshop, Neuenschwander described a cartoon character created by Walt Disney Studios in 1942 to represent Brazil in American movies, newspaper comic strips, and comic books. The character was given the name Joe Carioca, as "carioca" is a slang term used to describe a person from Rio de Janiero. Neuenschwander then presented the students with a challenge: to create a character who, in their opinion, would best represent Brazil today. In 2006, Neuenschwander incorporated some of these drawings into the animated film Joe Carioca.

Joe Carioca is by turns witty, absurd, and poignant. Neuenschwander takes the children's drawings as points of departure to construct a series of vignettes exploring the possibilities and challenges of intercultural communication. In one scene, for example, a suitcase emits phrases for animal calls in various languages. Neuenschwander also makes elliptical reference to the economic motivations between cross-cultural exchange when a map of South America materializes, transforms into a bar code, and then disintegrates. Joe Carioca includes a soundtrack by the Brazilian new music group O Grivo.

Neuenschwander lives and works in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. She studied at the School of Fine Arts in Belo Horizonte and at the Royal College of Art in London. She has had solo exhibitions at venues including the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, and Portikus in Frankfurt.

Joe Carioca is on view in Gallery 301 from March 6 through June 24, 2007. The New Media Series is curated by Robin Clark, associate curator of contemporary art.

Rivane Neuenschwander, Joe Carioca