Histories of madness: the drawings of Juquery

By MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo

Untitled (Geometrical Drawing) (Sem data/Undated) by Pedro Cornas (O Estudioso)MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

"It is not be confining one's neighbor that one is convinced of one's own sanity." - Fiódor Dostoiévski. In 2015, in a year dedicated to exhibitions of its collection, MASP presented, from 12.6 to 11.10.2015, an extraordinary set of drawings made by patients at the Hospital Psiquiátrico do Juquery, founded in Franco da Rocha, São Paulo in 1898.

Untitled (Animals) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untiled (Hunt with Elephant) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

The set of 102 drawings was donated to the museum in 1974 by Dr. Osório César (1895-1979), a pioneer in artistic practices in psychiatric hospitals in Brazil. For César, these works should not be understood in their therapeutic context alone, but instead as art, which explains the donation of the drawings to an art museum.

Untitled (Animals) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman with Animals) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Animals) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Horse and Dog) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

César had a long-running history with MASP, where he organized the I Exposição de arte do Hospital Juquery [I Exhibition of Art from Juquery Hospital] in 1948, a year after the museum opened, and the exhibition Arte dos alienados [Art of the Alienated], in 1954.

Untitled (Man and Woman Inside a Ball) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

At the Museum, the exhibition was divided into two rooms, one dedicated to Albino Braz, with 42 of his works.

Untitled (Erotic Scene Inside a Ball) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Man, Two Women and Animals) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Two Erotic Scenes) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Dressed Man with Portrait on the Wall) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman with Candles) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

All of the drawings are made from ordinary materials like paper and pencil and, as such, their state of conservation is precarious and their formats are small.

Untitled (Dressed Woman, Walking) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Dressed Woman with Cage on Her Head) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman with Two Birds and Cat) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

The majority of the drawings are not dated, though it is supposed that they were created before 1964, the last year in which César was in charge of the Escola Livre de Artes Plásticas do Hospital do Juquery, the hospital's "free school".

Untitled (Woman and Birds) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Naked Woman with Two Birds) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman with Plume) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Naked Man, Arms Resting on Flanks) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman Bearing out Another on her Head) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman on Pedestal and Animals) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman on Pedestal with Flowers) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Until recently, the works were registered at the museum as "art of the alienated," but we have taken this opportunity to reclassify them alongside the works categorized as "art from Brazil".

Untitled (Seated Woman with Mirror and Laying Woman) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman with Candles) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Beast Tamer) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman on a Table and Animals) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Man Lifting Weights) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Man on Pedestal, with Standing Woman) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Amazon [Circus Scene?]) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Man on Horse on Pedestal) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman and Two Horses Kissing Each Other) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Two Horseman and a Man at the Center [Circus?]) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Man with Horse [Circus?]) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman on a Horseback) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman and Four Animals) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman and Two Horses Drinking) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman, Horse and Dog) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Man and Bull) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Man with Animals) (Sem data/Undated) by Albino BrazMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Two Men, Woman and Bird) (Sem data/Undated) by Antônio Donato de SouzaMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

The title of the exhibition refers to the first chapter of a broader and long-term project at MASP entitled Histories of Madness. It also references the title of the book History of Madness (1961) by Michel Foucault (1926-1984), in which the author developed a genealogy of the idea of insanity constructed in the West.

Untitled (Figure) (1938) by Armando NataleMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Ave Maria, 1901—1941) (Sem data/Undated) by AugustinhoMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Two Figures) (Sem data/Undated) by Geraldo SimãoMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Madness, which was once associated with liberty and ecstasy, became regarded as an illness and relegated to asylums, as a condition to be moralized, blamed and repressed.

Untitled (Big Head Man and Horses) (Sem data/Undated) by Geraldo SimãoMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Figure with House and Other Elements) (Sem data/Undated) by Geraldo SimãoMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Two Figures) (Sem data/Undated) by Geraldo SimãoMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Back View of a Couple) (Sem data/Undated) by Homero NovaesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Four Standing Ladies) (Sem data/Undated) by Homero NovaesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Couple — Erotic Scene) (Sem data/Undated) by Homero NovaesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Woman Smoking) (Sem data/Undated) by Homero NovaesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Group of High School Girls) (Sem data/Undated) by Homero NovaesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Boy and Girl) (Sem data/Undated) by Homero NovaesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Four High School Girls) (Sem data/Undated) by Homero NovaesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Four Standing Women) (Sem data/Undated) by Homero NovaesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Lying Woman) (Sem data/Undated) by Homero NovaesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Reclined Female Nude) (Sem data/Undated) by Homero NovaesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Standing Prisoners) (Sem data/Undated) by Homero NovaesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Marine) (Sem data/Undated) by J.F. MenezesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

The proposal of the exhibition refers to "histories" in the plural, not as a complete and consolidated history, but those that are open, flexible, in process.

Untitled (Fallen Tree) (Sem data/Undated) by J.F. MenezesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Christ Bearing the Cross) (Sem data/Undated) by J.Q.MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (In the Garden of Gethsemane) (Sem data/Undated) by J.Q.MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (The Baptism of St John the Baptist) (Sem data/Undated) by J.Q.MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Dog and Snake) (Sem data/Undated) by José Ferreira BarbosaMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Blond Woman) (Sem data/Undated) by José Ferreira BarbosaMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Floss-silk Tree) (Sem data/Undated) by José Ferreira BarbosaMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (The Last Supper) (1941) by Maria Claudina D'OnofrioMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Madonna) (Sem data/Undated) by Maria Claudina D'OnofrioMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Deers Fight) (1940) by Maria Claudina D'OnofrioMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untiled (Mater dolorosa) (Sem data/Undated) by Maria Claudina D'OnofrioMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Christ Bearing the Cross) (1941) by Maria Claudina D'OnofrioMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (If my Heart Were a Boat) (1984) by Marianinha GuimarãesMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Glorious Saint, Sprit and Light…) (Sem data/Undated) by O. DoringMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Beloved Saint) (Sem data/Undated) by O. DoringMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Geometrical Drawing) (Sem data/Undated) by Pedro Cornas (O Estudioso)MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Geometrical Drawing [Apparition of Ines]) (Sem data/Undated) by Pedro Cornas (O Estudioso)MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Geometrical Drawing) (Sem data/Undated) by Pedro Cornas (O Estudioso)MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Geometrical Drawing [Albo]) (Sem data/Undated) by Pedro Cornas (O Estudioso)MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Geometrical Drawing) (Sem data/Undated) by Pedro Cornas (O Estudioso)MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Male Head) (Sem data/Undated) by Pedro dos ReisMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled [Man in the Forest) (Sem data/Undated) by Pedro dos ReisMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

The first exhibition of this important set of works, over 40 years after they arrived at MASP, also indicates paths for alternative readings and considerations, frequently marginalized in art histories, that go beyond the modern and Eurocentric, well known and canonical history in academia and museum. We have still much to learn from these drawings.

Untitled (Landscape) (Sem data/Undated) by Pedro dos ReisMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Untitled (Christ) (Sem data/Undated) by Sebastião FariaMASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand

Credits: Story

"Histories of madness: the drawings of Juquery"
12.6 to 11.10.2015
Curatorial: Adriano Pedrosa, artistic director; and Luiza Proença, curator.

Credits: All media

The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.

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