Abdias Nascimento's Painting and Activism Explored in Inhotim Exhibition

Inhotim inaugurated "Sortilégio" on March 18, focusing on Abdias Nascimento's painting practice from 1968 during his 13-year exile. The exhibition, part of a 2021-2023 cycle, features over 180 works and documents highlighting his plastic expression and connections across Brazil, the United States, and Africa. It reaffirms his valorization of Black culture as a form of struggle, appropriating African beliefs, symbols, and ideograms, with frequent depictions of orixás. The title derives from Nascimento's 1951 play, withheld by censorship until 1957, which addresses racism and cultural appropriation through Candomblé. Curator Douglas de Freitas describes the orixás as "heroes and martyrs in the fight against racism." Elisa Larkin Nascimento notes he began painting in the late 1950s, encouraged by Sebastião Januário, and founded the Museu de Arte Negra in 1950. The exhibition's design emphasizes chromatic and architectural references, including a large yellow wall. It connects to other Inhotim initiatives like shows on Tunga and the Teatro Experimental do Negro, with a fourth exhibition on his pan-Africanist trajectory opening next semester.