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Frances Gurgel

"I am from Lavras da Mangabeira in the state of Ceara. I was born there in 1946, but raised in Crato, also in Ceara. Up to my 14th birthday I had no contact with art. It was the arrival of a painter to the city where I lived that awoke my talent. Newly enchanted, I resolved to be a painter and I asked that the artist give me lessons. I studied with him for two months, during which I learned basic information about techniques and materials. I began immediately with canvas, employing oil paints. My family was very conservative and only allowed me to paint as a hobby, such that I participated in many exhibitions but could never sell my work.

"I graduated with a degree in history in 1970, then went to Rio de Janeiro to work, although this, in truth, was simply a pretext. I wanted to live in Rio to study art. I took a few free courses and in 1976 I went to study art at the National School of Fine Arts. At the Lage Park School of Visual Arts I found Rio de Janeiro's vanguard painting style, which I studied in 1991. I acquired more confidence in painting and experimented with more sophisticated materials and techniques, for example, acrylic, watercolor and textures.

"Initially my work was heavy, filled with social significance and always gray tones. The reality I experienced in the northeastern interior of Brazil was a constant theme of my work. Now, I wish to transmit good sentiments through my art, demonstrating that, despite adversities, we should transcend our problems and live with joy. Now I use more colors and thematically deal more with the folklore of my region, like the frevo [improvised Carnival dance], capoeira [foot-fighting dance], and the pifanos bands.

"My spiritual side evokes representations of angels. Cats, as well, are depicted with frequency; I like their elegance - their mysterious aura. On my canvases there is always a human figure; I paint nudes and faces. My style is figurative, with ill-defined forms that do not arrive at the abstract. In my paintings I express dance movements through 'stains' of colors that I imprint on the canvas, without losing reference to the human figure, rather searching for the essence of its simplicity.

"Novica, for me, represents an entirely new experience. I will be seen by thousands of people across the world. I lovingly dedicate myself to my art, and hope that I will now achieve more notoriety."