This essay was written to coincide with the opening of Três artistas jovens, an exhibition that was held at the Celina Decorações Galeria in 1969. It was one of first shows that would display works by Barrio and also held before his participation that same year at the Salão da Bússola, an exhibition organized by the MAM-RJ (Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio de Janeiro). The document illustrates the anti-text role that Barrio assumes in this essay as an alternative to the well-trodden path of critical insights. Artur Barrio (b. 1945) was born in Portugal and has lived in Brazil since 1955. Around the mid to late 1960s, the artist began working on his “Cadernoslivros” (notebook-books), with entries that were written in a very peculiar language. In some of his writings, he included those topics that involved his artistic ideas, some of which would eventually become part of his radical conceptual works.
[For further reading, please refer to the ICAA digital archive and the following texts written by Artur Barrio: “Se o corpo é o suporte = If the body is the support” (doc. no. 1110694); “Fantasias; Fragmentos” (doc. no. 1110600); “DOM,...O,,DE...P...PEL” (doc. no. 1110595); “Depoimento I” (doc. no. 1110598); written with artists Dinah Guimaraens and Lauro Cavalcanti “Mitos Vadios” (doc. no. 1110494); “Cadernoslivros” (doc. no. 1110597); and the publication dedicated to the artist, Barrio – Coleção ABC (doc. no. 1111068)].