I don’t know where to begin, as with almost everything I do. The beginning is so important, it has the power to guide you. The first painting opens a portal for its sequence and everything becomes a large series that connects. Starting this new series of paintings was like a difficult birth, it took two months of creative block. I kept wondering if it’s possible for the artist to separate life from art… Personally, I realize that my life relates to my inspirations..
I was in Angola for three months. It was one of the most incredible experiences I have ever had in my life. I still find it somewhat difficult to describe this feeling, but I feel it so much. I dream about this place… The city of Luanda appears in my dreams. During the dream, I know I am there when I see my bare feet on the red earth ground.
In the coming months, I will hold an exhibition in São Paulo. This exhibition will be the result of the study I was able to conduct in Angola. Part of this research will address the theme of popular beliefs in Angola and Brazil, magic, and traditional medicine. This has always caught my attention in Brazilian culture and in Angola, it could not be different. Brazil and Angola have their histories intertwined, crossed by the Atlantic. Here we live their Bantu diaspora, embedded in language, music, customs, and religion.
I am still on my third painting, and I feel increasingly grateful.
Currently, I work with paintings on canvas, and I mostly portray Afro-diasporic women within the Brazilian context. I navigate between memories, daily life, body, desire, and many of them can be confessional. Some of my processes start without me knowing the story, and later, I understand what a particular painting wanted to tell me. I find this interesting. I like to experiment with different types of materials and formats.
I create textures with stones, and I collect small found objects, such as shells, tiles, beads, fabric scraps, and embroidered fabrics… This materiality makes me think about building a home, about memory and protection. I believe that being self-taught provided me with curiosity and freedom for experimentation, resulting in the discovery of different possibilities. But I think that beyond technique, there is truth; making art with our truth gives birth to identity.
Writing this text feels like a diary to me. I hope that these paintings, which are still being born, can awaken memories and a reconnection with the lessons we have learned from our ancestors.
You can find out more about Larissa at @azuolarissa // www.simoesdeassis.com/artistas/larissa-de-souza
Photos: Anita Goes
