Brasil! Brasil! The Birth of Modernism
Last week we took a quick trip to London and visited the exhibition Brasil! Brasil! The Birth of Modernism at the Royal Academy of Arts.
In this first photo, we’re shamelessly engaging with a beautiful painting by Tarsila do Amaral. I’ve always been a big fan of her work, despite a few understandable controversies. (There’s a post on my blog about her work and exhibition in Paris, if you’re curious!)
The Brasil! Brasil! exhibition brings together 130 important artworks from several museums and private collections. I can only imagine the effort it took to gather all of them in one place!!
Brazilian Modernism was the most important art movement in my country, and yet it’s not very well known outside of Brasil. The movement influenced literature, music, and architecture, also played a role in shaping the country’s cultural identity.
As an artist today, I believe there’s plenty of room to also challenge the legacy of this movement, especially from my perspective as Afro-Brazilian. At the same time, I also recognise its significance and lasting impact on Brazilian art as a whole.
I’ve been thinking about writing more on this. Would you be interested in learning more about contemporary Brazilian art and artists? I’d love to share more!
Artworks presented on this post, and the respective year of production:
1 Tarsila do Amaral, 1950-61
2 Tarsila do Amaral, 1952
3 Anitta Malfati, 1915
4 Djanira, 1966
5 Cândido Portinari, 1956
6 Geraldo de Barros, 1953
7 Alfredo Volpi, 1970
8 Rubem Valentim, 1955
The exhibition also has pieces of Roberto Burle Marx, Flavio de Carvalho, Lasar Segall and Vicente do Rego Monteiro.
