[Air-L] ANTAGONISTS: algorithmic resistances exhibition (Sao Paulo, Brazil)

[Gabriel Pereira]

Dear AoIR colleagues,

I wanted to share with you all the exhibition ANTAGONISTS: algorithmic resistances, which I co-curated together with Bruno Moreschi and Heloisa Espada at the Museum of Contemporary Art, University of São Paulo (MAC USP).

The exhibition brings together over 30 works—primarily from Brazil—exploring how artists, activists, and scientists have resisted hegemonic information technologies from the 1960s to today. Themes include proto-computation, contamination of information networks, data extraction and subversion, and gambiarras (a brazilian term for creative improvisations). It features pioneering work from the MAC USP collection by artists like Waldemar Cordeiro, Paulo Bruscky, and Regina Silveira, alongside newer projects by Glicéria Tupinambá and the Canal*MOTOBOY collective.

Three highlights for Internet researchers: 1) an artwork made with Minitel in 1985; 2) the first computer ever entirely made in Brazil, named Ugly Duckling (!!!); and 3) an artwork made entirely with facial recognition images collected through Freedom of Information Act requests.

The physical exhibition runs until February 22, 2026 in São Paulo (Brazil). More details here: http://www.mac.usp.br/mac/expos/2025/antagonistas/index.html

An official catalogue book is coming later this year. In the meantime, I share here a subtitled version of a video made by a television channel, including our explanation of some works: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NNhRanzIGU If you'd like to see the photos of the exhibition, including all the exhibition texts, feel free to email me and I’ll forward it to you. :)

Wishing y’all a great year!

Gabriel Pereira