Made in Mirrors

Maestro Mozart The project – which germ grew up in discussions by e-mail started in April this year – understood, since its beginning, that it would be important to make a reflection on its own condition of cultural diversity and cultural differencies between the two cities, bringing this concern to its members through activities and conversations aiming to understand diversity not only from looking at what is distant/foreign but, also, at those who are close to us.

The initial discussions, therefore, aimed to build a project together, both designed by Jerika Vertegaal and Tereza Neuma who, however, found some difficulty in elaborating a single project due to the lack of acknowledgment of the social and cultural contexts of the localities within the project (Recife and Sittard). The distance, the cultural estrangement, the dissonant understanding about the methodology of work to be used and the difficulties of communication – related to the language speaking and other kinds of communication which’s reciprocity seemed hard to exist – avoided that Jerika, for example, had emphatic influence on Tereza’s proposals, restricting her participation more to the observation of Neuma’s work and small contributions during the development of the activities. The expectation of a project built by four hands was, thus, not achieved in Recife, and will, perhaps, find difficulties in Sittard on account of the same reasons and the impossibility of, in The Netherlands, find an educational circumstance similar to the one explored by the Dykes of Friendship in Recife. However, this situation highlights the importance of MIM initiative, as a provocative project that deals with a myriad of differences.

Already during the process of the project’s elaboration, the diversities between the cultural and theoretical methods of working of the two residents involved were obvious. These different methodologies – based on specific educational, political and financial structures – presented themselves both as an obstacle and as a seductive aspect of the residence. In all the conversations that occurred in the context of the project, we agreed that, in The Netherlands, in consequence of its cultural conditions, economic policies and greater stability and planning, there is little flexibility at work and a minimized habit of improvisation. Brazil, instead, was viewed as fertile ground for creativity (ability to improvise) and disorganization . Such differences, though have caused slight problems/disagreements related to delays or planning/production activities (especially in-between the team of EducAtivo Mamam), played, on the other hand, an important role, increasing the capacity of understanding and coexistence of all those involved in the project. The differences between the contexts of Mamam and Het Domein, known gradually over the days of meetings and activities, became inspiring for both sides (Tereza Neuma and Jerika Vertegaal), who could experience different modes of action which will probably be useful for the development of art-education activities in their respective institutions.

The activities with students of the school Nossa Senhora do Pilar occurred within the school and its surroundings, in MAMAM and MAMAM no Pátio, in the streets and on the Capibaribe River, aiming to diversify the participants’ points-of-view of Recife. The activities were proposed by Tereza Neuma and, during the process of residence, were transformed by the interference of Jerika Vertegaal, of the mediators of MAMAM, of the students of the school and of Felipe Querétte – the substitute for Clarissa Diniz, and whose performance was essential for the project’s proper development. Also in the company of Felipe, Jerika visited other places of her interest (such as Olinda, the Mercado de São José, Golden Chapel, the Republic Square, Brasília Teimosa, Ricardo Brennand Institute), in an effort to expand the understanding of our culture to beyond the limits of the art’s field .

Some activities were especially well received by the students, once they represented experiences that are not common to their daily life or, in another direction, led them to experience their daily life in a different perspective – more comprehensive, critical and poetic. Transforming umbrellas on media for visual poems, investigating the Pilar community without fear, gluing customized stickers according to their personal and emotional map of the neighborhood, riding a boat and getting to know the city through its poets were opportunities that seduced the students, allowing them to feel more accomplices of Recife, and also stimulating – due to visits to museums and art studies – that the students start a process of meeting and creation of desire related to art.

Despite some problems – as the delay in the arrival of Made in Mirrors’ fund for the project and the fact that Jerika does not speak Portuguese neither does Tereza communicate properly in English which was, undoubtedly, the most serious – the residence of Jerika promoted a very special cultural exchange, which’s resonance could be clearly perceived among the students of the Escola Nossa Senhora do Pilar. In addition to being excited with the continuation of the project (which includes the development of new workshops in school, the exchange of letters/drawings/postal art with Dutch children etc), children revealed to have understood cultural differences as never before they have had the opportunity to understand. Even after the departure of Jerika, with the encouragement of Tereza Neuma, the school has maintained its students researching on visual poetry, which has deepened the student’s interest for art. The teachers, in turn, have shown interest in working contents of the relation Brazil-Holland in classroom. The project has widely contributed to expand the self-esteem of pupils, teachers and school’s director, whose ability to work in partnership and in challenging situations became evident.

Moreover, during the residence of Jerika Vertegaal, it was planned a moment of exchange of experiences among other art-educators in Recife, not necessarily related to Mamam. This meeting was held in Friday, July 25, in the auditorium of the Museum, where Jerika – with the translation of Felipe Querétte – spoke about her work at the Museum Het Domein, explaining her methodologies and commenting on the place of art and education in Dutch educational context. Despite that, to the meeting, appeared only six educators, the conversation was very productive and represented an extended moment of exchange within the project, which aims to cover the art champ of Recife in a more encompassing way, in order to include also other art professionals of the city, and not only those directly affiliated to Mamam.

The first part of the Project Dykes of Friendship fulfilled its wishes to provide the two realities involved the opportunity to acknowledge each other, and, furthermore, was an important moment to experience the action of a museum of art when outside its institutional limits and expanded towards the society and the city. This practice, more common to the Museum de Arte Moderna Aloisio Magalhães than to the Museum Het Domein, brought important considerations which, in turn, will probably still be developed during the continuity of the project, in Sittard, The Netherlands.