Illume/Knapp Lecture by Mario Ramiro: Old 'New Media': Xerox Art in Brazil

Location

Manchester Hall, Manchester Auditorium

Free

The beginning of the 1980s was for many in Brazil the start of an ongoing phase of experimentation with non-traditional media, especially involving image reproduction. Artists like Ramiro concentrated on using photocopiers to explore the possibilities of creating works without an “original” – each copy becoming a master for other copies, and so on. The artistic use of photocopiers, which stressed reproduction ad infinitum, was generally called Copy Art in the USA, Electrographie in France and Electrografia in Spain. In Brazil, it became known as Xerox Art, in spite of the fact that machines of different brands were regularly employed in the production of the work. In addition to the exploration of multiples in Xerox Art, other aspects were also important to Ramiro, such as its social potential in that prices could be more accessible to the average buyer. Formally, Xerox Art is characterized by its wide range of graphic resources and by the creation of sequential structures that tend to organize themselves in time and space. This is due in part to its speed and low production cost, which favor the creation of large numbers of images.

Free admission and reception to follow.