A Arte Salva (The Art Saves) is a non-authorized intervention that took place on December 8, 2011 at the National Congress in Brasília, with the participation of dozens of people who threw 360 life buoys into the water mirror outside parliament.
The plastic buoys were numbered and tagged with a sticker that read “Art saves” at a special workshop with students from the University of Brasília (UnB). The action posited art as a possible means of recovering civic awareness.
It was my first collaborative intervention. When asked why I acted outside the law, I argued that to ask permission would undermine the work, and that the use of public space as a forum for art is a legitimate democratic right. Congress is the “House of the People”, and art transcends politics. This intervention was non-partisan; a gift from society to the National Congress.
360 pieces
Plastic life buoys, vinyl sticker, raincoatsand 200 participants
Photo: Dong Hyun Sung
Photo: Dong Hyun Sung
Photo: Ed Ferreira
Photo: Eduardo Srur
