Author Description

Documents, through essays and photographs, the activities of Nervo Óptico and Espaço N.O., two artististic collective projects that were active in Porto Alegre from the mid 1970s to the early 1980s, and which developed in protest of commercial interests in the art market and cultural governmental policies. Nervo Óptico was a group of young artists in Porto Alegre (Ana Alegria, Carlos Asp, Carlos Pasquetti, Clovis Dariano, Elton Manganelli, and others) that got together to discuss issues related to the cultural and political moment in Rio Grande do Sul creating "Atividades Continuadas," 2 days of exhibitions of objects, graphic works, photographs, installations, artist books, performances and debates. Espaço N.O. was a cultural space intended for new manifestations like mail art, xerox art, performances and installations, music, theater, dance and literature promoting cultural interchange and organizing courses, meetings, and conferences in contemporary art.