ESFERA NATIVA

Foto por: Tuân Nguyễn Minh Feminine spirit-DON'T STEP ON THE FLOWERS To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. The Feminine Spirit - Don't Step on the Flowers is a gift. Its name requires little explanation. At the same time, it draws attention to its fragility and the need not only for recognition but also for respect. Our gift consists of five huge identical flowers, perfectly aligned, represented as flowers in a beautiful garden. It is a mandala formed by 7 identical flowers that fit together perfectly. In reality, a single petal is repeated 35 times to form the mandala. Conceptually, it is a design with very simple bases but with a complex and demanding structure—much like the feminine spirit. The lines that outline the flowers are drawn in such a way that people can walk among them. The first installation of the artwork has been in Curitiba since October 1st, 2022. We took the opportunity to honor all those involved in maintaining the city, especially our beautiful gardens, which, even during the toughest phase of the Covid pandemic, continued to keep the city clean and blooming. The artwork is large, with a diameter of 18 meters. Its flowers have petals over 3 meters long. It requires around 10,000 flowers to complete the design. The work allows for public participation in large events, such as during its installation or when the flowers are changed. A company or public entity can invite people to gift a Feminine Spirit of their choice by planting one of the flowers. This can happen either in person or symbolically, using existing technological resources. These events can bring together thousands of people in a peaceful manner, free from conflicts, while providing great benefits for the sponsor, the participants, and society as a whole. Both the givers and the recipients will become strongly connected to the garden, creating a sense of belonging and citizenship, in addition to the peaceful attention drawn to the theme of its title. Up

Artist To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. My name is Claudio Araujo. In addition to being an artist, I am also the manager of our processes — and that’s why I introduce myself. At Esfera Nativa, I use tools I’ve gathered over the long course of my life’s journey. I draw on the resources of civil engineering, from my academic background. From design, in its many facets, explored since the days of Aryaú Design. From management, through my professional experience in the systems field. From geometry, which gives structure and makes my expression possible. And from nature, through my deep, lifelong connection with the Atlantic Forest in Rio, dating back to my childhood. Up

A Esfera é um ambiente conceitual que concentra a atenção das ações no nativo. Por isso dá nome ao sistema. Foto de Rafael Leão SEMENTE-Seed To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. The Seed project begins with a gift: a work of art delivered to a community. We install an interactive sculpture that transforms the space into an environment immersed in colorful light, as if a person were inside a blooming native tree. In this way, we awaken their awareness of the existence of a native heritage that belongs to them. Each piece is designed to represent a native tree from the place where it is installed, evoking the best feelings in everyone around. Just like in nature, each Seed is unique. The actions of the Seed project help reduce hunger and improve the environment in harmony with biodiversity. They also aid in adapting to climate change, which is already happening. They genuinely improve people’s physical and mental health, contributing to harmonious coexistence in society. And in the long term, they help consistently rebalance the planet’s climate. The Seed Project is directly aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) of the United Nations 2030 Agenda. Through art, sensory education, and environmental awareness, it promotes positive transformation in the communities it reaches. Among the scenarios considered during the project’s development, the natural environment is in the most critical condition and demands faster, more effective, and broader-reaching responses. To achieve this, we need people and society, and their immense power for action. Interacting with many people requires care, as societies face all types of conflicts — ethnic, gender, ideological, religious, and social class. By principle, Seed is accessible to everyone. Our actions take place in environments free from conflict. Thus, we developed our project based on a concept common to every person on the planet: Native nature. Flowers — lots of them — when we represent a blooming native tree. In this favorable societal environment, we foster transformative attitudes in people, creating awareness oriented toward action. We use a powerful human tool to create awareness while enchanting: Art — and not just Art, but Design. Our actions don’t necessarily require effort or resources from anyone, as participation is a positive and spontaneous experience for each person. All actions are simple and safe. They are effective, resilient, and generate only positive results through the direct and conscious participation of people. Any solution connected to people, societies, and especially the natural environment must have the widest possible reach — ideally, to every terrestrial environment on our planet. Therefore, for the Seed to be implemented correctly and effectively, it requires the support of the media and its formats, with its ability to inform and captivate people. We are looking for partners to bring these actions to life and, together, create a better future for the planet. Up

The Cage is a collective work. It was designed to be installed by a group of people. To do so, it uses hundreds of modules with the image of a bird cut out in steel, which can be joined with nuts and bolts, gradually forming the surface of a rusted cage. Large enough for people to enter it and feel discomfort and fear, simulating the sensation of being a captured bird. The geometric base of the bird figure design is extremely simple, allowing for various fitting possibilities for joining the figures. This creates the condition to form volumes with random surfaces, yet the pieces fit perfectly together. The steel used for the figures allows them to be bent to create curves in the planes. By principle, we stand for beauty, stimulation, and positivity. Therefore, the entire installation is designed to leave a large opening at the top, from which colorful birds are used in strong contrast to the rusted ones forming the body of the volume. These birds are arranged to simulate a flock flying out of the cage towards freedom. Here, the steel pieces are finished with paint and filled with colorful acrylic pieces. The difference between captivity and the freedom of nature is very evident, and even in this demanding experience, the viewer’s attention will be drawn to the beauty of the entire installation. Up cage

A Esfera é um ambiente conceitual que concentra a atenção das ações no nativo. Por isso dá nome ao sistema. ACTIONS TO REMIND THE OBVIOUS To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. VIDA INFINITOS ESPÍRITO FEMININO GAIOLA NOSSO TEMPO MILAGRE In the Actions to Remember the Obvious, we use Art to initiate a high-quality system and bring elegance to its results. These are interactive works, always creating positive impacts through beauty—designed to engage large audiences safely and enduringly. We operate in a demanding context: people in a conflict-ridden society, interacting with an already fragile environment. That’s why we must rigorously adhere to key principles: Our systems must be simple and secure; Feasible and adaptable; Effective; Resilient; Inclusive, with actions and outcomes accessible to all and anyone and fostering harmony in their surroundings. We must be extremely mindful and harmonious in our integrated approach to the environment, people, and society to ensure success. Our Actions have consistently met these challenges, surpassing every requirement. Up

THE ARTWORK In any culture, a native flowering tree is a symbol of beauty and evokes the best feelings in people. That’s why we wanted to represent a native flowering tree and simulate the sensation of being inside it, experiencing the privilege that some animals have when living in an environment immersed in colorful light and surrounded by flowers. Based on the experience lived in the work, we hope that when people see a tree in bloom, they will mentally transport themselves inside it, creating a very special and profoundly positive moment. Thus, because it is a native tree, meaning it belongs to the culture of that place, the awareness of the existence of the native environment will be sensitized in a subtle but profound way. We created a work of art using a solid shape that, for the philosopher Plato, is the most harmonious and symbolizes the Cosmos: a regular dodecahedron. From this, we created a feminine Cosmos, formed by 60 identical flowers in translucent colors. There are 12 identical pentagonal faces, which form the Platonic solid. Within this, we represent a native tree in bloom, adaptable to any region by altering the design of the flowers but maintaining the same solution across all pieces. The first artwork installed represents Brazil’s national tree, the Ipê, in bloom. For this, we covered the surface of the dodecahedron with clusters of Ipê flowers. We explored the technique of filling a surface with perfectly fitting figures, using a single flower repeated 60 times. The observation of these repeated flowers, while immersed in colored light, creates a moment of reflection. A subtle expansion of consciousness occurs with the realization that, from this experience, when observing a tree in bloom, one could imagine being inside it. The first artwork representing the Ipê features faces in an intense yellow, allowing exterior light to penetrate the volume of the piece, creating a brightly lit environment immersed in colored light. We designed the piece so that a person could step inside and become immersed in this light. The piece is modular and replicable. It was designed to be easily transportable. The faces are made of colored acrylic pentagons surrounded by two laser-cut metal plates, featuring the design of native flowers. Since each acrylic plate is protected by two steel faces, one on each side, the identical faces can be stacked and transported almost without the need for packaging. The dimensions and thickness of the faces were optimized for the use of the laser-cut metal sheets. The disassembled volume of the artwork was designed to fit in the trunks of urban pickup trucks. The assembly of the piece uses steel brackets secured with stainless-steel bolts and nuts. The final assembly of the artwork can be done safely and competently even without the artists present, as it is easy to understand with simple instructions. We chose to install the piece supported on the ground, on feet, for safety. It has durability and easy maintenance characteristics. The piece is inclusive. Its design and project take into account the necessary parameters for use by any person, without restrictions of ability or age range. The piece, installed at the Ópera de Arame in Curitiba, opened the spring of 2022 in that beautiful tourist and cultural space. Since then, the piece has received hundreds of thousands of visitors with excellent acceptance. Since its installation, it has required no maintenance except cleaning, as it is exposed to the outdoors. The installation has not recorded any negative events, proving to be absolutely safe. Each flower carries a subtle potential within it. Some will be pollinated and will generate seeds that will disperse and continue the cycle of life. Up

Rotterdam Building To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. This is an example of how small changes in perspective, within our principles of security, simplicity, and effectiveness, can bring great benefits by minimizing interventions and costs. Our challenge was to propose better utilization of the common areas of the Rotterdam Building in Curitiba. We started with the concept of expanding the use of the apartments, offering some of the advantages of living in a high-end house. We then created proposals to introduce typical home features, such as gardens, vegetable gardens, spaces for pets, workshops, vehicle showers, libraries for study, spaces for teenagers, themed gourmet areas, etc. There was also the demand to make the installation of a pool on the rooftop feasible. Even before considering potential reinforcements and structural adaptations to the building, we proposed the creation of a typical pool space, except we replaced the pool with high-quality showers. Also, aiming to minimize interventions, we proposed the construction of a deck much higher than the rooftop level, providing a landscape view in a safe and inviting leisure area, away from the edges of the building’s roof. The other traditional building spaces, such as the party room and laundry, were harmonized with our proposal. Up

Foto de Shiebi AL Infinites To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. Environmental imbalance has been putting the existence of many wild animals in Brazil at risk, especially butterflies, which, due to their fragility, are very demanding and require the delicate balance of biodiversity in their environments. We created a space where a person is surrounded by butterflies flying around them. It is an environment conducive to raising awareness of the fragile beauty that surrounds us and is also part of our heritage. We use figures with a 20 cm wingspan to represent the largest butterflies in Brazil. It is an installation with several butterflies, suspended, creating an environment where a person can be surrounded by them but cannot touch them. The butterflies are made of two metal faces, laser-cut and coated with electrostatic paint, framing colored acrylic panels. The entire set is easy to assemble and disassemble. The work makes a special reference to the butterflies 88, of the Calligore Pygas species, which are threatened to worrying levels but were once quite popular. Butterflies of this species are popularly known as 88 because of the pattern on their wings, which resembles the number 88. However, they carry a subtle message, as the wing design also evokes the symbol of infinity. Up

CREATIONS To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. MUTATIS MUTANDI OBJETOS EXPOSIÇÕES TECIDOS CONTINUUM There is always beauty around us. This is a gift of existence, available to us at all times. It is this beauty that drives me to create. Within it, I like to go a little beyond the initial perception of things. I enjoy the various possibilities of experiencing beauty. And the multiple beauties that can coexist in the same point. One thing being many things at once. I draw. And I draw in various formats, all sharing the plurality of lines. A line represents many things at the same time. I use an ancient technique that creates a figure through the movement of lines. In practice, the continuous displacement of lines fills a surface through the repetition of identical figures, formed by displaced lines that overlap perfectly. Each figure carries these special lines that imbue them with different meanings. Thus, a work formed by repeating and interlocking figures captures attention, necessary for understanding that it is not only the depicted figure that is there. But that each line represents two parts of the figure simultaneously. The attention captured brings the viewer into a personal moment, away from anything except observing something beautiful, transporting them to a possible natural reality. I represent what surrounds me, especially the wild nature of Brazil. I like the idea that some people will raise their awareness of the native heritage that still surrounds us. I seek traditional fitting solutions with pencil and paper. Having solved the riddles of perfect fits, I need technology to engrave or cut lines that must be executed with absolute precision. We understand that the material result must also seek the unattainable perfection, and therefore, despite the use of technology, there is always great effort from everyone involved in the process of pursuing beauty. Here, human care has great power when adding good things beyond beauty to our creations. For us, technology is a tool. Each of our creations carries, in its Certificate of Authenticity, our seal Aqui Tem Mão Humana ("Here, There’s Human Hand"), reminding that human care is always indispensable. Technology today allows precise reproduction of graphic design almost exactly as desired. The design can be printed on paper, fabrics, cast, engraved, cut in wood or its compounds, acrylic, steel, aluminum, rock, glass, ceramics, and transformed into almost anything one desires to express. Even in flowers. Today, at Esfera Nativa, I continue creating in search of refinement in using resources to close planes with repeated figures. As seen in Artworks executed in various materials serving different purposes. Among the creations presented, all from 2009 to October 2023, have the co-authorship and partnership of Cristina Yamada while at Aryaú. From October 2023 onwards, I, Claudio Araujo, assumed the activities of Aryaú Design, creating Esfera Nativa from this rich experience. And it is here, in this structure, that I have been creating. Up

Esfera Nativa cria experiências de impacto que combinam arte, design e propósito. To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. US SEED CREATIONS PROJECTS ARTIST SOLUTIONS ESFERA NATIVA

Exhibitions To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. Our first exhibition took place at the Canal da Música in Curitiba, aimed at children. We created an environment of a house so that children could see the application of art and design in their daily lives. This exhibition made us aware of the need to provide access to everyone and anyone. Since we work with graphic design, we faced the challenge of creating works that would also be accessible to people with visual impairments. We created the first tactile artwork, which featured compositions in various thicknesses, allowing the contours of the elements forming the piece to be perceived. Besides this detail, the artwork also explored the composition of colors. From there, we were invited by the Public Library of Paraná to hold an exhibition focused on people with visual impairments, as part of their reading accessibility initiatives. In this exhibition, we presented several more refined tactile artworks. In addition to these, we exhibited at the Cermen Gallery, the Polytechnic Center of Paranaguá, the Cube Curitibano, and in partnership with Desireé Sessegolo, at the Egyptian Museum. Up

citizen To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. The work expands awareness of each person’s participation in maintaining a community. It is a clock with hands that are moved by people. The idea is that there is increasing participation from everyone so that the time set on the clock is as correct as possible. Installed in a public place, it will be accessible to any citizen, which will make everyone aware that any inhabitant of that community is part of it since, over time, the clock will be kept with little delay throughout the day. Everyone will have access. Children going to school in the morning, public maintenance staff, the homeless, workers of all kinds, people on the margins of society, etc. Everyone will participate anonymously in a common objective that is expected to be a source of pride for that society, keeping it maintained and functioning correctly. Its final format is adapted to the conditions of the installation site, maintaining the concept and characteristics necessary for each case. Up