The art of narrating, drawing, singing and weaving: the artistic doings of Sibé and Meriná

Abstract

Indigenous artists have become increasingly known nationally by promoting a scene that Jaider Esbell calls "contemporary indigenous art". Museums, galleries and digital spaces have been demarcated by curators from different native peoples of Brazil to exhibit multifaceted productions. Two elders, in their daily activities, have contributed to strengthen this scenario: Sibé (Feliciano Lana/Desana) and Meriná (Bernaldina José Pedro/Macuxi). Both were victims of the death policy established in the country and worked with storytelling, drawing, singing and weaving. The aim of this article is to analyze the productions of these two connoisseurs of the knowledge of their communities, discussing how these works impact the field of contemporary indigenous art. The making of the old men and women reaffirms the millennial and ancestral existence of indigenous productions. For this purpose, the critique written by intellectuals of the native peoples is mainly resorted to. Thus, it is demonstrated that the contemporary indigenous art expression encompasses community elders and their practices are fundamental to the elaboration of works that are currently effervescent in art institutions.