Mariana Rocha
1988, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro
Mergulho entre peles e cabelos e puxo de lá o que eu não sou capaz de dizer, 2022
Acrylic, oil pastel and stick on canvas39 2/5 × 29 1/2 in
100 × 75 cm
As águas de dentro, 2022
acrylic, oil pastel and oil on canvas
46.06 × 36.61
117 × 93 cm
acrylic, oil pastel and oil on canvas
46.06 × 36.61
117 × 93 cm
“I see my works as records of a journey into the waters that I have inside. Concomitant with diving, my interest in marine mollusks arises, especially the octopus, which has become my "Alice's rabbit," guiding me in this soft and slimy universe. I am interested in comparing our physiologies, origins, histories, and skins; I discover that their ancestors one day gave up their protective shell to go in search of body expansion, of freedom.
I find myself immersed in the same salty waters where thousands of forced crossings of people from the African continent took place; in the dark waters where the mysteries of life and death dwell; that keep and dilute the memories imprinted by these bodies on stones, shells, sediments, and mud.
I see this return to the waters in the company of the mollusks as a way to recover and create new spaces of freedom, to elaborate strategies of defense and healing. I reject the attempts to sentence us to try to make our skins less darker and our hair less curly; I oppose the actions that undermine our self-esteem and weaken our defenses.
I propose, then, that we disturb our skins, our bodies, as octopuses do; that we do not only feel, but also think through our skin. That we connect to the world through arms with octopus suction cups that are as sensitive as a thousand tongues; that we release, like the octopus, a cloud of melanin ink to cover up our tormentor.
If, for a long time, I have had disappearance as a method of survival, now I wish for it to vibrate and reveal itself in every cell of my body.”
Mariana Rocha (b. 1988, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) is a visual artist and teacher based in Niterói, Rio de Janeiro. She graduated in Visual Arts from the State University of Rio de Janeiro and holds a master's degree in Visual Arts from the same institution. Mariana's artistic practice addresses issues related to the body, memory, and femininity. She explores her emotions and feelings through the metaphor of diving into saltwater, drawing inspiration from marine mollusks to create her paintings and drawings. Her practice intersects drawing, painting, performance, and photography.
I find myself immersed in the same salty waters where thousands of forced crossings of people from the African continent took place; in the dark waters where the mysteries of life and death dwell; that keep and dilute the memories imprinted by these bodies on stones, shells, sediments, and mud.
I see this return to the waters in the company of the mollusks as a way to recover and create new spaces of freedom, to elaborate strategies of defense and healing. I reject the attempts to sentence us to try to make our skins less darker and our hair less curly; I oppose the actions that undermine our self-esteem and weaken our defenses.
I propose, then, that we disturb our skins, our bodies, as octopuses do; that we do not only feel, but also think through our skin. That we connect to the world through arms with octopus suction cups that are as sensitive as a thousand tongues; that we release, like the octopus, a cloud of melanin ink to cover up our tormentor.
If, for a long time, I have had disappearance as a method of survival, now I wish for it to vibrate and reveal itself in every cell of my body.”
— Mariana Rocha
Mariana Rocha (b. 1988, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) is a visual artist and teacher based in Niterói, Rio de Janeiro. She graduated in Visual Arts from the State University of Rio de Janeiro and holds a master's degree in Visual Arts from the same institution. Mariana's artistic practice addresses issues related to the body, memory, and femininity. She explores her emotions and feelings through the metaphor of diving into saltwater, drawing inspiration from marine mollusks to create her paintings and drawings. Her practice intersects drawing, painting, performance, and photography.
CV
Education
2021
Master in Visual Arts by the Graduate Program in Arts, Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
2018
Poetic Immersions, course with Marcelo Campos, Cadu, Efrain Almeida - Escola sem sítio, Paço Imperial, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
2013
Degree with a teaching diploma in Visual Arts, Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
Awards
2020
Erika Ferreira Award for Creation and Development, Secretaria Municipal das Culturas de Niterói.
2019
Best artistic research - III Encontro de Estudantes de Graduação em Artes do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (PEGA).
2014
Honorable mention at the 23rd Scientific Initiation Week of the Universidade Estadual do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ).
Solo exhibitions
2021
Para investigar o mar precisei atravessar a pele [To investigate the sea I needed to cross the skin]. HOA Gallery, São Paulo, Brasil.
2016
Entrelaços. Sala José Cândido de Carvalho, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
Group Exhibitions
2023
Do vôo às narinas respirar, braços largos, mensagens ao vento. [From the flight to the nostrils breathe, arms wide, messages to the wind]. HOA Gallery, São Paulo, Brasil.
2022
Sorteio - Ainda Brasil. Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
Por enquanto: os primeiros 40 anos, Centro de Artes da UFF, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
154 Art Fair, HOA Gallery, Paris, França.
Possible Agreements, curated by Thiago de Paula Souza, Mendes Wood DM, Bruxelas, Bélgica.
Zonamaco Art Fair, HOA Galeria, México DF, México.
2021
Water marks: we must remember, HOA Galeria, Londres, Reino Unido.
Aqui estou y mantenho, HOA Galeria, São Paulo, Brasil.
Campo/contracampo, Galeria Aymoré, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
2020
Ações inscritas, histórias reescritas, Diáspora Galeria, São Paulo, Brasil.
Todo barulho que transborda do meu silêncio, Memorial Getúlio Vargas, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
2019
Efêmera, Colégio Pedro II Campus Engenho Novo, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
III PEGA – Encontro de Estudantes de Graduação em Artes do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Centro Cultural Phábrika, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
A seco, Espaço de Intervenção Cultural Tipografia, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
Vivendo sob o fogo, Centro Cultural da Justiça Federal, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
Oníricas, Sala José Cândido de Carvalho, Fundação de Arte de Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
2018
Emergência dos corpos. Centro Cultural da Justiça Federal, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
As águas do mundo. Escola de Música, Colégio Pedro II, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
destraços, Centro de Artes da UFF, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
Indícios, Paço Imperial, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
2017
24º Salão de Artes Plásticas de Praia Grande, São Paulo, Brasil.
5º Salão de Artes Visuais CCFA, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
2016
Pavilhão: Ocupa Maluca, Casa França-Brasil, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
Latinas, SESC Ramos, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
Festival Camelo de Arte Contemporânea, Belo Horizonte, Brasil.
15º Salão de Arte de Guarulhos, São Paulo, Brasil.
2015
Mostra Bienal CAIXA de Novos Artistas, Curitiba/PR; São Paulo/SP; Brasília/DF; Fortaleza/CE; Recife/PE; Salvador/BA; Rio de Janeiro/RJ.
A saudade é mesmo uma prece de amor, 2021
Acrylic on canvas71 7/10 × 59 4/5 × 1 3/5 in
182 × 152 × 4 cm
Pavão que pousa na aroeira, o descanso do meu pai , 2021
Acrylic on canvas
57 0/86 × 31 4/96 × 1 3/5 in
145 × 80 × 4 cm
57 0/86 × 31 4/96 × 1 3/5 in
145 × 80 × 4 cm
Clione limacina, Limacina helicina, 2022
Acrylic, oil pastel and stick on canvas
39 2/5 × 29 1/2 × 1 3/5 in
100 × 75 × 4 cm
A eclosão, 2022
Oil pastel and acrylic on canvas63 × 70 9/10 in
160 × 180 cm
Untitled I, 2022
Acrylic on canvas
43 3/10 × 41 3/10 × 1 3/5 in
110 × 105 × 4 cm
43 3/10 × 41 3/10 × 1 3/5 in
110 × 105 × 4 cm
Mucosa, molusco, 2021
Acrylic, oil pastel and oil stick on canvas
31/49 × 27/55
80× 70 cm
Acrylic, oil pastel and oil stick on canvas
31/49 × 27/55
80× 70 cm
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
Para investigar o mar, precisei atravessar a pele, HOA Galeria, São Paulo, Brazil, 2021
PRESS
Quais são as tendências que indicam os futuros caminhos para o meio artístico? Revista Exame, August 18th, 2022.
16 artistas mulheres que promovem a luta contra o racismo no Brasil, by Paula Borghi, Artequeacontece, November 16th, 2021.
A leveza dos contornos e das linhas, O Fluminense, October 24th, 2022.
Mergulho entre pele e cabelos e puxo de lá o que eu não sou capaz de dizer (II), 2022
Acrylic and oil pastel on canvas39 2/5 × 34 3/10 in
100 × 87 cm
Thaumoctopus mimicus (dyptich), 2021
Acrylic, ink and crayon on paper
29 9/10 × 43 3/10 in
76 × 110 cm
Acrylic, ink and crayon on paper
29 9/10 × 43 3/10 in
76 × 110 cm