CLAUDIA HELENA
Fortaleza, Brazil
ART OF THIS WORLD: How long have you been sculpting in paper mache?
CLAUDIA HELENA: Indeed, non-stop since 2001. I work every day. AOTW: What prompted you to work in this medium? CH: When I was 12 - 13 years, in 1972, I found a recipe for a puppet paper mache in the newspaper. Many years later, I resumed the interest so powerful after a trip to Paris where I found work incredibly fantastic in paper mache in the vicinity of the Centre Georges Pompidou also known as The Beaubourg. I forgot definitely my academic background in Biology since I am dedicated, body and soul, to paper mache. This means absolutely that paper is, above all, environmentally friendly, perfect!  Paris |
 CLAUDIA HELENA  Só Felicidade! Only Happiness! |
 Allegrito com Monotonia (with Monotony!) |
 Free! |
AOTW: Can you describe some of the influences that relate to your art?
CH: I've always been completely fascinated by colors, was always busy with painting and remember that the foremost first works that caught my attention were Joan Miró. Then, the provocative works of Salvador Dali, Pablo Picasso and René Magritte definitely pushed me to make my thoughts as Magritte would say about his works.
AOTW: Where did you learn to make art? Did you attend school or are you self-taught?
CH: As I said before, I did my work in paper mache after reading a recipe in the newspaper. Never did a single class on paper mache, I am completely self taught, my curiosity made me evolve and continue my path of discovery.
AOTW: Who are your favorite artists?
CH: Miró, Magritte, Chagall, Kandinsky, Klimt, Picasso, Salvador Dali and Paul Klee.
AOTW: Have you always lived in Brazil? Do you travel?
CH: Yes, I was born in Fortaleza, capital of Ceará, which is located in northeastern Brazil, a place full of light and very sunny. I love to travel and know almost all Brazilian cities... Brazil is a continental country. Outside of Brazil I traveled to Madrid, Toledo and Barcelona, Spain and Paris, France. Traveling is one of the best investments we can make in life--it is very important.
 Doces Lembranças em algum lugar do passado.... Sweet Memories somewhere in time.... |
 AROUND THE WORLD |
AOTW: What was the last art exhibit you attended? What did you like about it?
CH: The Brazilianas, a valuable collection of Brazilian culture, literature, art and history. Over 500 years of our culture. And Brassaii , the amazing photographer who recorded an exceptional way of Paris, this exhibition, 98 photographs in black and white, fabulous. I saw too the exhibition Miró; It was here in my town a few years, also amazing. In Paris, visiting the Louvre was a fascinating experience, as well as the Prado and Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid.
AOTW: Your work has so much whimsy and good feelings associated with it. What ideas do you draw from when making a piece?
CH: With my work I can express my convictions of hope, love, freedom and peace for mankind, it is my best means of expression. The world is very gray, full of disasters and disaffection happening everywhere. So I am happy to convey my colors. Shooting everyday ideas, books, people. To quote the great Russian painter Marc Chagall in a speech he gave in 1958 at the University of Chicago, a beautiful statement of hope: “The life is clearly a miracle. We are the parts of that life... from one form to another life (...) A man can never, technically or mechanically learn all the secrets of life. But through his soul, is tied to world with harmony with it, might even unconsciously”. In his book My Life, Chagall wrote:” I think art is above all a state of mind”. Fully correct in his assertion. I cite also the great Italian filmmaker Federico Fellini, who said that art is a miracle: "Art is the possibility to turn defeat into victory, sadness into happiness. Art is a miracle. " What I seek is to work with truth, with soul, with this I work and I have wonderful personal achievements.
 Felicidade Happiness |
 THE STORYTELLER |
AOTW: Is there a message in your work, and if so, what are you saying to the viewer?
CH: Yes, there is a message of gratitude to life, a message of belief in the joy that life has or may have for anyone who wants it. There is hope and love in the things around us, nature is the largest and finest example of all and we are part of it. We must be vigilant and prone to receive donations while we inhabit this planet. The life is too short for wasting time with what does not concern us.
I love the word "construction" by the great significance it represents and my work is literally a building that has its own time ... the jobs are processed so slowly because they need a lot of time between the various stages of construction. This way I also learned to better deal with the issue of time ...
AOTW: Where do you exhibit your work?
CH: In Brazil, unfortunately the paper mache has not yet acquired the importance it deserves. The paper is a fabulous medium, light, versatile and accurate for the sake of the planet that it be reused. I made a small exhibition about Fellini in Koni Baa in 2009. It would have been even better in an appropriate space. I also did a show with the circus theme in an International Circus Festival in Recife, Brazil in 2005 at the invitation of the leadership of the Festival. It was wonderful. Two stores in my town resell my work, Romã and Koni Baa. People come to me because someone already knows me well and refers them. I have met some wonderful people through these contacts. I would make a great show with my work ... I hope one day to see the paper mache in Brazil with the prominence it has in the U.S.A. and Europe.
CH: Yes, there is a message of gratitude to life, a message of belief in the joy that life has or may have for anyone who wants it. There is hope and love in the things around us, nature is the largest and finest example of all and we are part of it. We must be vigilant and prone to receive donations while we inhabit this planet. The life is too short for wasting time with what does not concern us.
I love the word "construction" by the great significance it represents and my work is literally a building that has its own time ... the jobs are processed so slowly because they need a lot of time between the various stages of construction. This way I also learned to better deal with the issue of time ...
AOTW: Where do you exhibit your work?
CH: In Brazil, unfortunately the paper mache has not yet acquired the importance it deserves. The paper is a fabulous medium, light, versatile and accurate for the sake of the planet that it be reused. I made a small exhibition about Fellini in Koni Baa in 2009. It would have been even better in an appropriate space. I also did a show with the circus theme in an International Circus Festival in Recife, Brazil in 2005 at the invitation of the leadership of the Festival. It was wonderful. Two stores in my town resell my work, Romã and Koni Baa. People come to me because someone already knows me well and refers them. I have met some wonderful people through these contacts. I would make a great show with my work ... I hope one day to see the paper mache in Brazil with the prominence it has in the U.S.A. and Europe.
 Existência |
 O céu de Celeste |
AOTW: Do you have a website or on-line gallery for people outside of Brazil to see your work?
CH: Yes, my works are updated on Flickr. It is a great place to showcase the work and meet people, it has given me great joy. All are very welcome!
AOTW: How long have you been an artist?
CH: I do not like to call myself an "artist", not sure I deserve the title ... What I can say is that I have exercised my work with discipline, love, patience and work daily for nine years. My interest in art has always been with me. I had many colored pencils in childhood. When I was a teenager I painted shirts for my brothers, cousins and friends. When my children were born, I painted the walls of their room, my nephew as well and even took a job so professionally, but it was only one ... hehehe.
AOTW: What kinds of things did you do as a child?
CH: The normal play of children with dolls, balls, bike, sea bath, trips to the cinema, theater ... sometimes things in a happy childhood!
AOTW: Are there artists in your family?
CH: There are people with a love for art, some writers--my father--my grandmother by my mother played piano and violin in her youth. My brother is a musician, and my oldest son is a filmmaker.
AOTW: What kinds of art do you enjoy seeing?
CH: I'm passionate about folk art here in Brazil, with clay, ceramics, wood. They are true artists with fantastic productions. I greatly appreciate exhibitions of painters, sculptors and photographers. Music is always present in my life.
 Fellini- Minha Versão Fellini - My Version AOTW: What else would you like to share with those who are reading about you and your work?
CH: Firstly I would like to thank so much the people who are paying attention at this time. I share the idea of the fabulous artist and art theorist Fayga Ostrower (Lodz, Poland 1920 - Rio de Janeiro RJ 2001) that we all have a creative potential. The potential gains are appearing daily as we exercise our capacity, they exist for everyone. Creativity is a process that encourages us and strengthens itself in creative movement, needs vitality. Be free to create and believe in your inner strength. In conclusion I quote a thought by Fayga Ostrower: "... creativity is the essence of the human in man. In exercising its creative potential, working, creating in all areas of your doing, the man sets his life and gives you a sense. Creating is as difficult or as easy as living. And it is equally necessary. " AOTW: Thank you, Claudia Helena. View more of Claudia Helena's work here. |
 Charmilla  Tico - Ticos  Without Compromise. |
