![Willys DE CASTRO, Objeto Ativo [Black and White], 1959](https://artlogic-res.cloudinary.com/w_2400,h_2400,c_limit,f_auto,fl_lossy,q_auto/artlogicstorage/cbprojects/images/view/aa3b8c2080d50af0cda15e6f76a52b3ap.png)
Willys DE CASTRO Brazilian, 1926 -1988
Objeto Ativo [Black and White], 1959
Oil on canvas on wood
52 x 2 x 4 cm
20 1/2 x 3/4 x 1 1/2 inches
20 1/2 x 3/4 x 1 1/2 inches
Signed: "Willys de Castro - 1959 - Sāo Paulo "pintura" oleo s/ tela - 518 x 16 x 39 mm"
The work was acquired by the late, world-renowned Professor Newton Bernardes (1931-2007), in 1960, by one of the physicists of the Brazilian physics institute of the University of São Paulo...
The work was acquired by the late, world-renowned Professor Newton Bernardes (1931-2007), in 1960, by one of the physicists of the Brazilian physics institute of the University of São Paulo (USP) and the University of Campinas (Unicamp). The work was acquired on the occasion of Willys de Castro's exhibition in Campinas, São Paulo .
Bernardes was appointed and influenced greatly by his friend Mario Schemberg, a distinguished physicist, considered the greatest theoretical physicist of Brazil, and a devotee of Willys de Castro.
As well has being a famous scientist Schemberg was an influential critic of Brazilian art having lived with the main Brazilian modernist artists like Di Cavalcanti, Lasar Segall, Volpi and Portinari and the foreigners Marc Chagall and Pablo Picasso. He wrote several articles on the artists of the Brazilian concrete and neo-concrete movement, among them Lygia Clark and Hélio Oiticica.
Bernardes was appointed and influenced greatly by his friend Mario Schemberg, a distinguished physicist, considered the greatest theoretical physicist of Brazil, and a devotee of Willys de Castro.
As well has being a famous scientist Schemberg was an influential critic of Brazilian art having lived with the main Brazilian modernist artists like Di Cavalcanti, Lasar Segall, Volpi and Portinari and the foreigners Marc Chagall and Pablo Picasso. He wrote several articles on the artists of the Brazilian concrete and neo-concrete movement, among them Lygia Clark and Hélio Oiticica.
Provenance
Família BernardesSimōes de Assis Galeria de Arte
Private Collection, Sāo Paulo
Exhibitions
Willys de Castro Múltipla Síntese, Galeria e Dale, 2015, Sāo Paulo, BrasilEmpty House Casa Vazia, Luhring Augustine, 2015 New York
Literature
Commentary on a similar Objecto Ativo (1960):The frontal approach:
In Objecto Ativo 1960, Willys de Castro makes a number of allusions to the history of art. The way of displaying it and the front surface (painted in black) refer to the old space of the ‘picture’. In this way the observer comes across a known object - the picture, which asks a standard response of the viewer. This frontal approach however, proves fruitless: the more the observer looks for the center, the more he or she is frustrated. Beyond this, the exaggerated verticality and the absence of representation cause the viewer to question the whole piece. Just as with one of Barnett Newman's "zip" abstractions, the work lengthens like a fracturing line between two fields of color, betraying the precariousness of the medium, (which continues to be a necessary component). And despite the reference to painting, the artist develops a discourse of ambiguity.
The lateral approach:
Unexpectedly this approach does not hinder the perception of the object. Instead it encroaches on the actual space of the object, and something intrudes that should be expected to function as the projection plane of representation. It is through this intrusion that Willys de Castro articulates the rigorous calculation that presides in 1960s Objecto Ativo of 1960, and that requires the observer to participate - to be active. Unwittingly, it abandons the search for the centre, requiring movement to complete a semicircular trajectory around the object. This movement reveals that the lateral views are different and contrast with the front view. These become cursive perceptions, with no immediate development of the concept, but which reveal the complexity of work over the course of the movement. What begins as painting becomes sculpture - and this transformation is the key theme of Objectos Ativos.
The optical illusion:
The visual guidelines also interfere with this experience. The lower part of the front surface exhibits a discontinuity arising from the insertionof a small white square. Even though the change is small, it breaks the monochrome pattern. By shifting to a negative shift, that square is orthogonally carried to the left side. The viewer notes the construction of the positive-negative motif, but when the observer transitions to a certain diagonal position, the two elements unite in an imaginary figure, which is a surprise. Indeed, this view suggests the existence of a small cubic recess in the frontal surface. Now the work is organized from a visual effect.
(Translated from: Renato Rodrigues da Silva, Journal of Advanced Studies vol.20 no.56 São Paulo Jan./Apr. 2006)