About the Artisans
BERNARDO DAVID
Since he was very little, he was enchanted by colors and drawings, his biggest fun wasn't kites, cars or anything like that, it was actually colored pencils, markers, crayons... Very early on, his parents noticed his artistic gift. Over time he improved his techniques on his own, so we can say that he is self-taught. He has never taken courses or had a teacher. He became even more enthusiastic after moving from Rio de Janeiro to Tiradentes. It was there that he was able to pursue his career and improve himself, since Tiradentes is a city of artists. He loves what he does and he depends on what he does for a living, that's why they say he is very perfectionist with his work. He has always thought that this is the secret to pleasing his clients and making them always return.
RODNEY PAIVA RAMOS
She was born in Manaus, but has lived in Acre for 14 years. When she moved to Acre, she had no work and almost went into depression. However, a neighbor talked about a course and the love for crafts continued to grow and continues to this day. She creates bio-jewelry with reused wood and seeds from The Amazon Forest and her work has already won several awards such as the Sebrae Business Woman Award, in addition to winning a seal of excellence from the United Nations for education, science and culture (Unesco) in 2012.
FERNANDO CESAR FERREIRA GUIMARAES AND JULIO CESAR GUIMARAES
Sculptures and utilitarian objects - vases, jewelry boxes, jugs, plates - handcrafted from a stone popularly known as soapstone, which is actually a rock found in deep layers of the earth's crust, with a smooth and velvety surface to the touch. It became famous in the hands of one of the greatest Brazilian artists, Aleijadinho. Sculptor, carver, architect and carpenter, in the colonial period he imprinted characteristics on soapstone that inaugurated the Brazilian Baroque, an exuberant style. The artist discovered the stone due to its softness, during the period when - diagnosed with a serious illness that deformed the limbs of his body, especially his hands - he became face difficulty in carving wood, an extremely rigid material, and incorporated into his work in soapstone.
In colors ranging from gray to green and accepting any type of tool, this is the material upon which the brothers Julio César Guimaraes and Fernando Guimarães focused and built their art for the last four decades. Delicate pieces with precise lines are the result of skill and patience. Even working together for so long, they deliver characteristics distinct in their creations. The stone is extracted in a small village, Santa Rita de Ouro Preto, district of Ouro Preto, about 20km. They are self-taught and dedicate themselves to soapstone art since the 80s. Aleijadinho is considered by them as their inspiration and the master of this kind of art.
Together, they innovated the local tradition of soapstone craftsmanship that was previously produced in a single color, with the use of varnish giving the finish, or natural. It was then that they threw dozens of colors over the detailed drawings they created, in an explosion of chromatic possibilities.
HAYDEE FABIANA GRACIOLI
She graduated in Visual Arts at Unespar (University of Art in Parana- Brazil) and in 2005 she specialized in History of Comtemporary Art in the School of Music and Arts in Curitiba-Brazil. Her intention was to follow the academic field as a history of art teacher in a university, however, after she got married in 2006 and spent her honeymoon in Itacare-Bahia (a beautiful beach in Brazil); she and her husband felt in love by the little town of Itacare and everything changed: they moved to Itacare in 2007 and they opened a restaurant. They kept working in the food field for 10 years, but they got overwhelmed by it. They wanted something new and different in their lives. So at this moment she decided to dig into the ceramic field and she felt in love. She did a ceramic course and other courses related to ceramic and right after she opened her studio where she dedicated and still dedicate all of her love for ceramic and it's all she wants to do in her life. It's been 7 years that she's been creating incredible pieces with all of her passion!
LENA DANTAS
She is 51 years old and she lives in Lauro de Freitas-Brazil. She is a determined entrepreneurship. Her father was an artisan, but even having contact with craft work at home, she never got interested." I always did a little bit of everything, I even graduated as a nurse technician, but it was when I got pregnant that I decided t became an artisan." She's been an artisan for 24 years.
Lena started doing conventional jewelry until she qualified herself in courses that made her realize the importance of using ecofriendly raw material to develop her pieces. Therefore, she decided to learned more about reuse to create bio-jewelry. Using pieces of coconut, demolition wood, tree bark and hay, she creates amazing collections.
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