Artist's Statement

The people who live in the favelas (slums) of Rio de Janeiro create strategies to celebrate life despite the social pressures to which they are subject. They are not just "the oppressed."  Rather, they are obviously human beings who love, hate, enjoy and suffer. They are, like all of us, both manipulators and victims in their relations with neighbors, driven by the irrationality of human feelings. The propaganda of the ruling classes seeks to dehumanize the favelados (slums dwellers) by focusing on the favelas' high crime rate, the favelados' lack of knowledge about the official culture, etc. Of course, the struggle for power is manifest in the favelas, as in all societies, also in the interpersonal relationships of everyday life.

My works are created almost spontaneously.  Generally, I start with a theme in my mind.  I do not usually make sketches. However, my style is influenced by Heitor dos Prazeres, a painter from the favelas of the 20th century whom I admire, as well as by examples of naive art that I have had the privilege of seeing. Naive art finds very original moments in Rio de Janeiro mainly in the encounter between the Portuguese colonization and the reaction to colonization by the groups of African origin. This unique blend of Afro-Portuguese culture is the focus of my style.

Although my style of painting is cataloged as naive art, I prefer to think of it as a kind of folk art. My main purpose is that my work can be understood by people in general and especially by the people who belong to the social level that my paintings depict. I do not care much about how my paintings are labeled or defined in terms of a style of painting. The most important, really, is the artwork itself and the capacity it has in a given society to communicate ideas and allow different interpretations and conclusions from the public. As Machado de Assis wrote, "the creation is everything." What is left is just the opinion of each person.

Link to Roberto Salgado de Carvalho's website:

http://petruscamper.com/carvalho/artist.htm

Artist's Background

PAINTING EXHIBITS:

1983- Colegio Pinheiro Guimaraes – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

1987- Centro de Arte – Washington, DC, USA

1990- Martin Luther King Memorial Library – Washington, DC, USA

1995 – Brasil-Tropical Restaurant – Washington, DC, USA

2002 – Museu Internacional de Arte Naif – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

2003 – Broward Center for the Performing Arts – Florida, USA

2004 – Gallery Pro Arte Kasper – Morges, Switzerland

2007 – Museo Nazionale Delle Arti Naives – Luzzara, Italy

2011-2012 – Touchstone Gallery, Washington, DC, USA

2016 - Touchstone Gallery 40th Anniversary - Washington, DC USA

2017 Art of Engagement Exhibit, Touchstone Gallery - Washington, DC USA

2017 Totem Cor-Acao Naif International Art Biennial - Sao Paulo, Brazil 

MUSEUM COLLECTIONS:

Some of my paintings are included in collections belonging to the following institutions:

Museu Internacional de Arte Naif – Brazil

Museu Municipal de Socorro - Sao Paulo, Brazil

Musee International D'Art Naif – Canada

Gallery Pro Arte Kasper – Switzerland

Mas Foundation – France

Museu do Folclore Edson Carneiro – Brazil

Museo Nazionale Delle Arti Naives –  Italy