Gabriela Carneiro da Cunha
Tapajós
Powerful testimony of an environmental catastrophe told through the stories of mothers — and onstage developed photographs.
With performances and films based on long-term artistic studies, Brazilian artist Gabriela Carneiro de Cunha has dedicated herself to listen to the testimony of rivers in her homeland, as witnesses of environmental disasters. ALTAMIRA 2042 (Summer Festival 2021), was a techno-shamanic ritual evoking the struggles of riverine peoples against a dam in the Xingu river, located in Altamira city and its impact on all beings belonging to the region. Following this work, which is still globally touring, she now presents TAPAJÓS as a German premiere at the Summer Festival, dedicated to the Tapajós river, motherhood and photography: As one of Brazil’s largest rivers, it is polluted by illegal mining activities with mercury, the same chemical that was used to develop photographs until the mid-19th century and today notably poisons mothers and their unborn children on the Tapajós. On stage, Carneiro da Cunha develops large-format images that tell the story of the river, its pollution and the women who are fighting for healing. TAPAJÓS is a performance ritual for the alliance of all human and non-human mothers, creating an immersive investigation of testimony and resistance.
