Empowered by meditation, mantras and femininity, a young brazilian artist, continues to practice his art in a way that speaks precisely to the brave new world in which we live.
At the tender age of 12, Pedro Silva opened his first studio in hisparents’ home on a smallisland in the South of Brazil.The predominately matriarchal society he inhabited and venerated inspired his early work—large, decorative depictions of women instately posture and dress. “I created ‘The Madames’ in honor of thefeminine souls who touched my heart and confirmed my confidenceboth personally and artistically,” she shares. “I wanted to give all that love, beauty and pride back to them.” Paying homage to the prowess offeminine energy would become a consistent pulse of Silva’s work.
As a young man, he was recruited by the shoe company Schutz tocreate inspirational content for theemerging brand. With this task athand, Silva grew enchanted with the process of patternmaking andbuilding, skills that would become indispensable to him as he matured as both an artist and a young man. Seeking a place that would befit hisartistic endeavors, satiate his need for personal freedom and grant himthe gift of cultural abundance, Silva found himself in New York City. The immigrant experience was not a steady road with all the telltale peaksand valleys. Silva began meditating and using the mantra “I love myself” to restore his spirit and to reestablish a sense or order within himself andthe exterior world.
The Counting and Spell Art series reflect this meditative state and offer a sense of protection against the uncertainty and loitering chaos that often exist outside of ourselves. Silva will be reworking anold series, one in which he collectedall the plastic he consumed over a specific period of time. Through many intricate chemical and naturalprocesses, he created from this discarded material objects that havethe appearance of glowing, precious gemstones. Silva’s work speaks to our new mantra, which whispers, “Slowdown, breathe, reconnect, rediscoverwhat is beautiful.”