In 1923 the Brazilian artist Tarsila do Amaral declared, “I want to be the painter of my country.” Galvanized by the new styles of painting then revolutionizing European art and by the nationalist drive of her circle of innovative artists and poets in São Paulo, Amaral set out to craft a uniquely Brazilian form of modern art. Her enigmatic, dreamlike paintings—exemplified by The Moon (1928)—directly inspired Anthropophagy, a cultural movement whose audacity and anticolonial stance would have a profound influence on future generations. Curator Beverly Adams explores Amaral’s mysterious night landscape and traces the artist’s journey from her early experiments as an expatriate in Paris to her creation of the highly stylized, exuberantly Brazilian works that would make her her country’s most celebrated modern painter. 48 pp.; 35 illus.

 

Each volume in the One on One series is a sustained meditation of a single work from the collection of The Museum of Modern Art. A richly illustrated and lively essay illuminates the subject in detail and situates that work within the artist’s life and career as well as within broader historical contexts. This series is an invaluable guide for exploring and interpreting some of the most beloved artworks in the Museum’s collection. View the entire series here.