THE ARTISTIC AND SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT IN VIK MUNIZ'S WORK: RELATIONS WITH POP ART AND THE CONTEMPORARY MARKET

Abstract

The article discusses how the precepts of Contemporary Art influenced the Brazilian plastic artist Vik Muniz, because the signers of this form of artistic expression rethought the traditional pictorial and sculptural patterns of visual representation, introduced new techniques and materials, and confer a differentiated dynamic to the language and the relations between the artist and the public. This proposal takes as a study reference, especially the series Pictures of Garbage (2007-2009), conceived in the landfill of Jardim Gramacho (Rio de Janeiro) and portrayed in the documentary film Waste Land (2010). Through these works, Muniz dialogues with issues such as social inclusion and sustainability, adopts a variety of aesthetic languages, as well as transforming anonymous subjects into characters re-reading universally known works. The artist projects himself on the world market because, in a way, he meets his demands, but breaks with the traditional paradigms of aesthetic representation that, for centuries, predominated in artistic production.