Variáveis de uma trajetória expositiva: O caso Hélio Oiticica

The paper analyzes the exhibition history of the artist Helio Oiticica and adopts as a starting point his international reception. It aims to study how the artwork and the artist become valuable, and how it changes over the time. How are the career strategies of a successful artist built? And what is the importance of an art exhibition in this process? The exhibition of Helio Oiticica’s artwork was conceived in three periods: the first when the artist was alive (1965-1980), and directly acted as a curator of his own exhibitions; the second period (around 1980-90) concerns the big events and exhibitions that traveled around America and Europe; and the third period, from the 2000s until today, when the artworks were bought by museums, institutions and international private collections. The critical examination of the international reception of Brazilian art intends to expand the comprehension of contemporary art practices, such as the multiple influences that may contribute to the value of an art object, intensifying the production of an artist. This research identifies the persons involved with Helio Oiticica’s work – critics, independent curators, collectors, art dealers and artists.