The Art Of Fernando Carpaneda

Interviews

Fernando Carpaneda is one of the most famous Brazilian sculptor's in the New York underground scene. Born in Taguatinga, a small city in the capital of Brazil, Fernando participated in the genesis of this countries punk movement. During this time, he was arrested several times for minor disturbances and it was then when he discovered his passion for sculpting. In the next few years, his work was recognized abroad, but not in Brazil, and because of this, our hero caught a plane heading north to embrace his success. O Martelo, in synchrony with the contemporaneous facts, brings to you this exclusive interview that will show you, the reader, the sincerity of a growing talent.

O Martelo:When did you travel abroad for the first time and what influenced your decision to leave Brazil?
Carpaneda:I traveled for the first time in 1995, to participate in an exhibition in New York City. After the show I have made so many contacts, and people were so interested in my work that I decided to move to the U.S.

O Martelo:In one of your past interview you talk about the Punk Movement as your biggest reference. Today the expression Punk is only a cliché; don't you think that the word punk has become a generic term like Blues?
Carpaneda:Yes and no, of course the term has its wear and tear and a lot of people don't have the slightest idea of the meaning of the punk movement in relation to the music and culture as a whole. The punk movement still brings a concept that is not entirely dead, that is not a simple cliché and is still influencing the young generation of artists around the world. The punk posture is not a cliché. In the beginning Malcolm Mclaren (Sex Pistols and New York Doll manager), used to think of punk as fashion and marketing. In other words, the different lines of view are not always malefic, they can be nice too.

O Martelo: Do you consider your art Punk?
Carpaneda:Not at all, my art is original! Even in the dialogue with another artist with different propositions, my art is original. The element punk is present in my work as a theme, never as form. Like every worthy artist, I follow my own path.

O Martelo:The original punk philosophy destroys the icons. What is your point in using artists’ personal objects in your work?
Carpaneda:I always like to collect left over things. When I was poorer than I am now, I begged for money in front a club in my hometown Brasilia, so I could get in, and have fun like everybody else. One day a queer handed me some change and said: Take these crumbs, I don't need them, I'm rich. I was happy to take the money and be able to go into the club and enjoy myself. In conclusion, the discarded objects have a special meaning to me.

O Martelo:Wouldn't this attitude be anti- punk, a cult to the personality?
Carpaneda:Funny you said that, isn't there a cult to Sid Vicious? Patty Smith? And aren't they totally personal? To utilize personal references intelligently, giving them new affective and artistic sense doesn't reinforce the personality cult. Be ironic. Like many artists, I play with the pop industry, for example: I make portraits of some Punks that have become personalities and of some personalities that have become punks, like Boy George. I made one portrait of him and the next day he was sweeping the New York streets. I show both sides in my work. I am currently working on a sculpture of Daniela Cicarelli. She passed from celebrity to a whore here in the U.S. and in Brazil as well, therefore I included her portrait in my collection of punk personalities. You can interpret this as you wish.

O Martelo:Now that you live between U.S., U. K. and Brazil, what is your point of view of the first world countries?
Carpaneda:The biggest difference that I see is the respect for the laws, here in the U. S. the laws are followed and they work faster. People think twice before doing any shit.

O Martelo:Nowadays when you bump into a famous character that you used to know only in books and magazines, what do think?
Carpaneda:I have destroyed many of my adolescence myths and this is very positive (laugh). Famous people have many common points with everybody else. Being famous is not a synonym for talent. Many of those famous people hide behind their fame and their only objective is to make money.

O Martelo:Did you watch the Brazilian movie City of God? I asked this because nothing bothers me more than this posture that denounces the social abysm in Brazil when the solo objective is to be gain applause in foreigner countries. Is your art in the same path?
Carpaneda:Most of the portraits that I create are my boyfriends. The homeless people and drug dealers that I depict are my friends and the majority of my sculptures show the American disfavored people that I've met here. Disaccording with your affirmation, I depict the other side of the first world that many people don't see. I depict the American poverty instead of the American beauty. I don't do social denounce, I do art. But, I will not depict only themes that are pretty to make the nationalist people happy or vice-versa. I represent what I live and what stimulates my sense. Anyway's, City of God is a great movie.

O Martelo:People used to say that what a photographer specialized in women nudes really want is to get laid. When you create a masculine sculpture, are you able to separate art from sexuality?
Carpaneda:The best way to create a masculine nude sculpture is by knowing the body of the model in details.


O Martelo:Particularly I think that you deify rock icons. Why don't you reconstruct them like you did with the sculpture of the two skinheads neo-Nazis performing oral sex?
Carpaneda:In that sculpture, the skinheads are performing oral sex on me. I don't see myself obliged to reconstruct or construct anything. I will not pay tributes to anybody if I don't want to. The only criterion in my life is my sensibility. I could depict Jim Morrison sucking my dick and I wouldn't be reconstructing his image. I would be reinforcing a cliché of the transgressor rock star. To depict rock icons is to me, retribution of pleasure that was given to me in life. I leave the reconstruction to the academics and art critics. Babe, I'm an artist!

O Martelo:Plaster Caster, a famous American groupie of the 60's used to make plaster molds of celebrities’ penises. In her biography, she wrote that an erection was necessary to accomplish her work and preparation was mandatory. I've read in your biography that you utilize semen in your sculptures, why do you do that?
Carpaneda:Semen has an excellent texture to work as a basis for creation in paper and paintings. I utilized semen from three different models and each of them had different texture, color and flavor. After dried the semen presents a special color for the piece, a shade of yellow that is impossible to reproduce with dyes. These three works of art were masculine nudes. There is a symbolism between semen and clay, both are elements of creation. The man was created from clay, and semen is the beginning of life. I am working on a new sculpture utilizing these two elements; I will photograph them and post the whole process online.

O Martelo:Do you consider yourself a gay activist?
Carpaneda:No, do you think I should? (Laugh)

O Martelo:Brazil has developed in some things; one of them is the role of the homosexuals in society. The same sex marriage is a subject of discussion as well the rights of homosexual couples. Popular TV shows are presenting transsexuals, daily. Do you believe that the Brazilian society has digested and accepted the differences?
Carpaneda:Not at all, the term gay in Brazil is still a joke. There are some victories, but the world cannot be resumed to drag queens, travesties and transsexuals.

O Martelo Magazine-Rio de Janeiro
http://www.omartelo.com/omartelo6/english3.html

Fernando Carpaneda by Nicholas Forrest – artmarketblog.com

Nicholas Forrest is an art market analyst, art critic and journalist based in Sydney, Australia. He is the founder of http://www.artmarketblog.com, writes the art column for the magazine Antiques and Collectibles for Pleasure and Profit and contributes to many other publications.

I sometimes come across artists that I just have to let the world know about and Fernando Carpaneda is one of those artists, but be warned, because Carpaneda’s work is very confronting and will be not be to everyone’s taste. Those willing to keep an open mind and explore Carpaneda’s work will be glad they did because he is a truly amazing artist. A brave artist too. Brave enough to use rent boys, thieves, punks, goths, homeless people, and other unsavoury types as the subject of his work. If you are intrigued then please read on.When I first saw a picture of one of Carpeneda’s works I didn’t know what I was looking at. What I saw looked like a photo of a person but had a surreal element to it that suggested that there was more to Carpaneda’s work than the image revealed. As soon as I found out that I was looking at a clay sculpture I was completely blown away. The level of detail and the amount of work put into each sculpture is quite astonishing especially for a clay sculpture. To give each sculpture a personal association with the person they depict, Carpaneda uses objects connected to that person in the sculpture. Carpaneda says about his work on his website that: “All his portraits are like a relic, a holy place, a moment caught in time. He uses objects that have a connection to the portrayed person to composing his work, such as cigarette butts, condoms, beer cans, underwear, semen, empty toothpaste boxes. In other words, things that are part of these people’s real world, and his own. He uses such objects and remains as a beginning for his portraits”

Most of the people we see on a day to day basis whether it be at work or at social event dress and prepare their appearance so that the look as one would expect a normal person leading a normal life to look. Most of the people that Carpaneda depicts, however, dress and prepare their appearance in a way that reflects their true personality. These are the sort of people one would normally want to stare at but would try and refrain from doing so because we are taught that it is rude to stare. Instead of depicting the perfect male figure that most people are familiar with as a result of classical sculptors, Carpaneda utilises classical methods and materials to construct highly detailed analogues of what many would consider to be the outcasts of society.

A classical sculpture of a nude male figure is an image that almost everyone is familiar with and is able to view without feeling uncomfortable, embarrassed or repulsed. A sexualised image of a homosexual male, however, is a totally different story. Carpaneda’s sculptures challenge our perceptions of gender and identity as well as questioning the labels that society put on people who do not conform to the accepted norm.
Yes, his work is confronting and will not be to every one’s liking but it is undeniably the work of a talented artist who is not afraid of challenging the boundaries of artistic practice and confronting viewers with the issues of stigma and division in modern society

http://artmarketblog.com/2009/07/06/the-art-of-fernando-carpaneda-artmarketblog-com

The art of Fernando Carpaneda
Sunday, February 12 2006 @ 02:22 PM CST

Interview by Flavio Speed Demon

S.D - Your work seems to be much inspired by the "loser" figure. What fascinates you about this attitude?
F.C - I don't consider prostitutes, drags, junkies, punks or homeless people as losers. On the contrary, they are honest with their attitude and have to courage to show their real face. They do what they like. They, the same way as me, do not belong to the mediocre kind of people who only want to see our negative side. We admit publicly our conditions and points of view, and this displeases many people.
S.D - Many of your sculptures depict rockstars like Iggy Pop, Dee Dee Ramone etc. Has your artistic background been influenced by some particular music scene?
F.C - Punk

S.D - In your biography your often refer to the XVII century, which makes us curious about your artistic formation. Are you an autodidact or do you come from some Arts school?

F.C - I am autodidact, I always liked to study and research about art, its history and tendencies. I also have many friends from the academic scene in Brazil, the US and UK. I do have a natural talent for the arts, and did not bother to get into academy to learn art techniques and history, the same way I have no difficulty in learning to write and speak new languages.
S.D - Has the fact that you lived the same experience and lifestyle of the people you depict helped you giving your sculptures more "sense of reality"?
F.C - To better understand a certain reality nothing better than making part of it.
S.D - When did you find out you were gay, and how did you face it?
F.C - That was never an option, I was born gay. For me this is genetic, just like having blue or brown eyes. I could be born a hetero but I was born gay, it’s as simple as that. And I Iove it. And I am proud of it. I never had problem dealing with that.
S.D - Is there a queer scene in Brazil (bands, places, fanzines, distributors etc)?

F.C - Yes, there is a queer scene in Brazil, especially in the large urban centres like Sao Paulo, Brazil’s largest city. There are gay clubs like "A Loca". There’s also zines like Grindzine. There are also publications like "G Magazine" and "Mix Brasil". The musical scene is a bit weak. There is not a specialized segment. There are, on the other hand, a lot of pop singers that are assumedly gay, both man and woman, and they enjoy a lot of of success in Brazil.

S.D - Going through the list of your exhibitions, we realized that since 2001 all of them have been in the States: have you moved there?
F.C - I don’t live in any specific country. I have a house in Brazil and share and apartments both in NY and London with friends. As I am always traveling I can’t have a fixed place to settle. And I also have to spend a lot of my time in the streets with together with the people I depict.

S.D - We know you also work with video. Can you please tell us about it?
F.C - I have a bunch of works in video from the time when I was part of a performance group in Brasilia. We presented on the streets, on art gallery windows and other places. We filmed and presented these videos on a couple of events.

S.D - Your works mainly show borderline people, life on the fringe of society, with all the troubles and possible negative aspects that it involves. Have you ever wondered if your art, but also art in general, can be a conductor of positive messages too?
F.C - When you depict the "negative" sides of life you are acting positively because you make people question their own lives and ask themselves if their own actions are not taken sensibly in such a depressing world as ours is.

S.D - Have you ever had censorship problems with galleries for your sexually explicit sculptures?
F.C - Most Brazilian gallery owners and curators are homophobic and are declaredly afraid of gay people and underground art. The public institutions, on the other hand, have been much more tolerant, even supporting some of my events. On the US and UK I never had problems with that.

S.D - What kind of people buy your artworks?
F.C - All kinds of people. Government workers like policeman and politics are normal in a capital city like Brasilia as well as go-go boys or friends with whom I exchange my work. There is not a clear public, it is very diverse.

S.D - Is it true that you often use for your sculptures personal objects belonging to the people you depict or to you? Why this choice?
F.C - Yes. I always used personal objects from the people I pictured. Like when Joey Ramone died I was presenting in the CB’s Gallery – CBGB’s and collected some of the objects his fans left on the sidewalk in front of the club, like a kind of altar or mausoleum. I used these objects as base for his sculptures and gave then to Arturo Vega. Another example was during the Bowery Electric Festival where I collected beer cans used by Jerry Only and Dez Cadena. Now I am using these objects as a base for sculpture I am making of the guys. I think it is important to use objects that made part of the figured person’s reality. When I used sperm of my boyfriend Matt I was preserving a moment of love. It was a nude of him made of clay. Mythically mankind came from clay as man comes from semen. I also made an image of Yolanda, a drag queen and vocalist of Yolanda and the plastic family using objects I collected during their presentation at the Homocorps festival at the CBGB’s. I am giving these specific examples also as an answer to your first question about "losers" I picture.

http://news.infoshop.org/article.php?story=20060212142228134