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Biography

Madalena dos Santos Reinbolt (September 14, 1919 – 1977) was a Brazilian artist whose multidisciplinary practice explores themes of memory, migration, and cultural hybridity. Best known for her paintings and large-scale embroideries, Reinbolt's work is deeply informed by her own identities as a domestic worker, an artist, and a Black woman, as well as themes of displacement and belonging.

In her early twenties, Reinbolt moved to Salvador from her home state of Bahia to work as a maid. In 1945, she relocated to Rio de Janeiro, then São Paulo, and finally settled in Petrópolis in 1949, where she became the cook for architect Lota de Macedo Soares and American poet Elizabeth Bishop at their residence in Samambaia. Encouraged by Soares, Reinbolt began painting during her spare time, capturing scenes reminiscent of her childhood in Bahia. Her early works, primarily oil paintings on paper and canvas, showcased expressive brushstrokes and depicted both rural and urban landscapes.

Around 1969, Reinbolt transitioned to creating large-scale embroideries, which she referred to as "quadros de lã" or "wool paintings". These intricate tapestries, crafted from hundreds of vibrant colored threads on burlap, featured themes ranging from pastoral life to celestial imagery. Her unique approach involved using multiple colored threads simultaneously, sometimes working with up to 154 needles at a time, resulting in richly textured and dynamic compositions.

Although Reinbolt faced barriers in the art world due to race and class prejudices in mid-20th-century Brazil, Reinbolt's artistic contributions eventually gained recognition. Her works were posthumously exhibited at the 1978 Venice Biennale and are now part of collections in institutions such as the Museu Afro Brasil and the Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand (MASP).

-- Hannah Sheridan

CV

Selected Solo Exhibitions
2025, Madalena Santos Reinbolt: A Head Full of Planets, American Folk Art Museum, Midtown, New York, NY
2022, Madalena Santos Reinbolt: Uma Cabeça Cheia de Planetas, MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo
Assis Chateaubriand, São Paulo, Brazil

Selected Group Exhibitions
2024, Crossings, Kasmin Gallery, New York, NY
2024, Women by Women, Galeria Estação, São Paulo, Brazil
2023, Reverses and Transverses: Artists Beyond Boundaries (and Friends) at the Biennials, Galeria Estação, São Paulo, Brazil
2022, Brazilian Histories, MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
2022, Crafting Modernity: Design in Latin America, 1940–1980, MoMA, New York, NY
2021–2022, Carolina Maria de Jesus: Brazil for Brazilians, Instituto Moreira Salles (IIMS), São Paulo, Brazil
2021–2022, 3 Frestas, Trienal das Artes, Sesc Sorocaba, Sorocaba, Brazil
2021, Our North Is The South, Gomide&Co, São Paulo, Brazil
2021, Terra and Temperature, Galeria Almeida & Dale, São Paulo, Brazil
2020, Women in Folk Art, Galeria Estação, São Paulo, Brazil
2016/1969, A Mão do Povo Brasileiro, MASP - Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand, São Paulo, Brazil
2006–2007, Viva Cultura Viva do Povo Brasileiro, Museu Afro Brasil Emanoel Araújo, São Paulo, Brazil
2000, Arte Popular: Mostra do Redescobrimento, Fundação Bienal de São Paulo: Associação Brasil 500 Anos Artes Visuais, São Paulo, Brazil
1991, A Mata, MAC/USP - Museu de Arte Contemporânea da Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil

Collections
Museu Afro Brasil Emanoel Araújo, São Paulo, Brazil
Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil

Selected Publications
2005, Pequeno Dicionário da Arte do Povo Brasileiro Século XX, Léila Coelho Frota, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
2000, Arte Popular: Mostra do Redescobrimento, Fundação Bienal de São Paulo: Associação Brasil 500 Anos Artes Visuais, São Paulo, Brazil

1988, A Mão Afro-Brasileira: Significado da Contribuição Artística e Histórica, Emanoel Araújo,
Tenenge, São Paulo, Brazil
1978, Mitopoética de 9 Artistas Brasileiros: Vida, Verdade e Obra, Lélia Coelho Frota, Funarte, Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil

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