Maria Helena Vieira da Silva (1908 - 1992)
Maria da Silva was a Portuguese and French abstract painter who established her career in France. She was born in Lisbon, Portugal, where she attended the Lisbon Academy of Fine Arts - studying with painter Fernand Léger. She studied sculpture and ceramics in addition to abstract painting. Maria's lifespan carries history and adversity that significantly changed her perceptions and motivations throughout her career. (Post-War 1940s -1950s era)
In 1928, Maria moved to Paris, France - arguably one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Everything you see is art - the architecture, the people, the fashion, and the history hits you all at once. She strived to make her mark in Paris, by displaying her abstract paintings at different shows and exhibitions until in 1933 she held the first ever one woman exhibition in Paris. She made waves by taking on a role that didn't exist and transforming her art accordingly. Like most Post-War painters, Maria was known not just for her abstract expressions, but also the surrealist aspects of her paintings, which consisted of complicated rectangular patterns and shapes that were hallucinogenic to reality.
She became internationally known for her complex and dense crafts during the 1950s and went on to design many tapestries and stain glass designs for churches and other sights alike. I received an (inexpensive) replicate/copy of her self portrait as a gift when I was 15:
It doesn't seem like anything spectacular at first glance. Some artworks pop out at you, while others take time to saturate and show meaning. Her left eye is always what draws me into this painting because it's almost as if she is watching you with one, while the other one looks as if she is drowning in her own thoughts - slightly two-faced. As if she wanted to capture both sides of her personality - feelings below the surface.
Her abstract "city-like" scenes:
Her intricate and dense patterns proved to be hypnotizing when you notice the city like structures she uses. (surrealism in some regard)
In 1940, Maria and her Hungarian husband Arpad Szenes, who also held his own distinction as a fellow painter, moved to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to escape the effects of World War II. They lived in Rio for seven years until she returned to Paris post - WWII, where she would remain for the rest of her life. By 1956 she acquired citizenship in France. She also won the Gran Prix des Beaux Arts at the Biennale in Sao Paolo, Brazil.
~Bianca Lopes~
Art and Women
Professor Caçoilo
January 22nd, 2017
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