The art historian Ana Maria Belluzzo begins her essay by considering factors that suggest links between modern art and primitive art processes, such as the idea of “rupture” in modern times. She discusses certain key paintings by Tarsila do Amaral, such as A Negra [The Black Woman], Abaporu [Anthropophagus] and, to a lesser extent, Religião Brasileira and Maternidade. Belluzo points out links between primitive Afro-Brazilian sculpture, Amaral’s anthropophagus works, and La création du monde by the painter Fernand Léger. Identifying these works in terms of “primitives of the new era,” including Picasso’s paintings based on African art, Belluzo claims that Amaral’s art is reminiscent of works by her mentor (Léger) and her then-husband (Oswald de Andrade). Belluzo also analyzes the figures shown in Amaral’s paintings, describing them as products of the artist’s own imagination that includes myths and deities such as the “subconscious images” created in surrealist art. In closing, Belluzo considers Amaral’s work within the context of the “anthropophagus movement” that influenced Brazilian modernism in the 1920s

Ana Maria Belluzzo, the Brazilian art historian, discusses the links between Brazilian primitivism and modernism, specifically within the context of the “anthropophagus movement” that was active in the years following the publication of the group’s manifesto, written by Oswald de Andrade in 1928. This essay is about the paintings produced by Tarsila do Amaral (1886–1973) during that period. It should be noted that in 1995, shortly after this essay was written, Amaral’s painting Abaporu (1928) was purchased by the collector Eduardo F. Costantini—founder of MALBA (Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires)—for the highest price ever paid for a Brazilian painting, making it an iconic work of Brazilian modernism.  

On the subject of Tarsila do Amaral’s work, see by Mário de Andrade “Tarsila” [doc. no. 781921] and “Tarsila” (manuscript) [doc. no. 781938].  

The researcher and art critic Ana Maria Belluzzo has worked extensively in the field of Brazilian modernism and modernist art. She is a teacher at the FAU-USP (Faculdade de Arquitetura e Urbanismo de la Universidade de São Paulo), and is the coordinator of the Brazilian team working on the ICAA project “Critical Documents of 20th Century Latin American and Latino Art.” Other essays and articles by Ana Maria Belluzo are “Os surtos modernistas” [doc. no. 808443];  “Introdução: atualidade e memoria” [doc. no. 1111300]; and “A propósito d’o Brasil dos Viajantes” [doc. no. 1111299].