Looking back / Looking forward: Instituto Sacatar, Brazil 2019-2021

Last year was an extraordinary year for the Sacatar residency program in Bahia, Brasil; and the actions taken and the activities supported last year are a harbinger for how the program can be reconfigured to have an even greater impact, post-pandemic. We invite you to take a look at our 2019 Annual Report to read about

• Our outreach to refugee artists
• The thematic residency session we held that brought environmental artists and local activists to work together
• How local business leaders convened on the neutral grounds of Sacatar to discuss and implement a local ban on single-use plastic bags
• A symposium that brought together leaders and practitioners of the African religions widely practiced in Brasil

The time for "art for art's sake" has passed. The challenges we face on our fragile planet demand the integration of visionary artists into the political process. The facilities at Sacatar can serve as a platform to launch a diversity of meaningful initiatives. Local initiatives can inspire worldwide. The cumulative impact of many local actions may yet revert us to a path towards a sustainable and just economy.

Taylor Van Horne, Executive Director

Photo credit: APIB – Coalition of the Indigenous Peoples of Brazil

Dear Friends of Sacatar,

Like everyone on the planet, I have had plans disrupted as a result of the Covid-19 crisis.  Reaching a milestone birthday, I had plans to celebrate later this month at one of the greatest performing arts festivals in the world - the three-day festival of Boi-Bumbá, held in the town on Parintins located deep in the Amazon on the island of Tupinambarana, the second largest river island in the world. Reachable by a week-long boat trip from Manaus, this annual festival brings together the visual, conceptual, musical, theatrical, choreographic and design arts in ways difficult to describe - but mind-blowing to experience.  Such a trip demands planning, and I prepared by reserving flights and initial hotels, while communicating with the captain of the boat, etc. The coronavirus situation in the Amazon has been heart-breaking to follow, and when the festival was canceled, I sighed selfishly.  Later, I decided to donate the funds that were intended for the trip to APIB, the Coalition of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil, to support the tribes whose traditions and art forms have inspired so many of us - and, needless to say, the spectacular festival itself. Covid-19 is a serious threat to indigenous populations. Let’s help them out.

Mitch Loch, President, Sacatar Foundation

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