Desde o fim até o começo
Metal and automotive paint
17.5 x 22 cm (approx.)
6.9 x 8.6 in (approx.)
Edition 1/30 + 4 AP
O Pequeno Colecionador
São Paulo, 2023
Metal and automotive paint
17.5 x 22 cm (approx.)
6.9 x 8.6 in (approx.)
Edition 1/30 + 4 AP
O Pequeno Colecionador
São Paulo, 2023
The interest in the playful dimension as a key to spectator participation consistently runs through Gustavo Prado's work. In Desde o fim até o começo (2023), it is a central element. Here, the metal top is both the support and the motor of the work itself, combining the ideas of time and movement. One of the oldest children’s games in the world, it already existed in 4,000 B.C., as evidenced by clay examples found on the banks of the Euphrates River – the longest and one of the most historically important rivers in Western Asia. This temporal weight inherent to the object is reinforced by the artist, who writes the word "time" on the top, in different locations and sizes, following its circular shape. The top is a game that can be played alone or in a group, but the goal is always to keep the piece in motion, spinning around its own axis. When the piece loses balance and stops spinning, you have to start over.
Like a kind of hourglass, the top is almost a way of making time visible. At the same time, the speed of the movement in Desde o fim até o começo ends up making the word "time" invisible. It’s important to highlight here the reference to Brazilian constructive heritage in Gustavo Prado’s production – in this case, especially the connection with concrete poetry, particularly Ferreira Gullar’s object-poems. The words – in this case, just one, repeated several times – are transformed into poetic elements through movement and in relation to the other (who is the one that ensures the movement).
Like a kind of hourglass, the top is almost a way of making time visible. At the same time, the speed of the movement in Desde o fim até o começo ends up making the word "time" invisible. It’s important to highlight here the reference to Brazilian constructive heritage in Gustavo Prado’s production – in this case, especially the connection with concrete poetry, particularly Ferreira Gullar’s object-poems. The words – in this case, just one, repeated several times – are transformed into poetic elements through movement and in relation to the other (who is the one that ensures the movement).
