Territórios e Capital: Extinçōes: Lourival Cuquinha
By commenting on cultural contradictions, he exposes the reversibility of "truths" that habit sustains (law is no longer the final or only word). In this way, he becomes an expert in disrupting ingrained image habits, provoking instability. His work does not aim to break boundaries; it is not concerned with what lies beyond. Instead, it seeks to question the rules from within—because, after revolutions, it is always within those rules that we remain.
At the beginning of its history, the United States was an example of economic disorder, with various types of currency circulating within its territory. However, over the course of the 20th century, the country became the main force behind the unification of the global economic system, especially after the U.S. government definitively abandoned the gold standard in the early 1970s. From that moment on, the idea of money ceased to be expressed through an equivalence with gold, which had previously determined the relative value of national currencies. Instead, the value of money came to be guaranteed by the strength of each country’s economy and, ultimately, by its political influence. This shift granted money an unprecedented level of virtuality and symbolism, just as more and more aspects of social relations became quantified and structured monetarily. These two parallel processes gave money an essentialist character—it became a pure expression of power, whether in the hands of states and institutions or individuals.
In Territories and Capital: Extinctions, Lourival Cuquinha works precisely with the tension of this new status. The exhibition consists of a large-scale installation featuring a three-dimensional asterisk, which cuts through and reorganizes the space. This structure is made from R$0.05 coins, with flags from ten different countries hanging from its arms—each flag constructed from banknotes of various currencies. At the center of the asterisk, a cube contains the piece O trabalho gira em torno (Work Revolves Around), composed of three rickshaws, whose movement produces sounds and projects images recorded on the streets of London.
Throughout his career, Cuquinha has continuously explored the depths of customs and laws with a strong political inquiry and an ironic approach. In this exhibition, the questioning of the virtuality of values—staged and restaged throughout history—is taken to the extreme, utilizing a conceptual repertoire of singular political force. The relationship between the images of different countries and their two most recognizable symbols (the image of their flag and the image of their currency) blurs the distinction between national value and the flag as something to fight for: in this context, the struggle is economic, and the symbol is commercial—a brand or an emblem of a corporation.
The artworks, when viewed collectively, can be interpreted as a critical commentary on key moments in global economic history. They represent, for example, the 2008 financial crisis and the ongoing tensions between Cuba and the United States. At the same time, the presence of O trabalho gira em torno—a piece conceived from the artist’s experience working as a rickshaw driver in London—functions like an archaeological artifact, pointing to a social space where labor and physical effort remain closely tied to the tangible nature of money and remuneration.
By manipulating banknotes—objects that serve as ultimate fetishes of power—Cuquinha continues to develop his political reflections, exploring the realm of pure value virtuality. By commenting on cultural contradictions, he exposes the reversibility of "truths" that habit sustains (law is no longer the final or only word). In this way, he becomes an expert in disrupting ingrained image habits, provoking instability. His work does not aim to break boundaries; it is not concerned with what lies beyond. Instead, it seeks to question the rules from within—because, after revolutions, it is always within those rules that we remain.
Gabriel Bogossian
