Manuela Madeira

Manuela’s work is informed by memories of a childhood spent mostly in the coastal regions of northern Mozambique. Manuela was born into a matriarchal society in Nampula, Moçambique in 1969. From early childhood, she has been influenced by women in her family seen as guardians of lineage, land heritage and traditions.  Growing up in a context where traditional values were constantly threatened by political ideologies, through her images Manuela tries to bring what is visible and invisible of her identity and applies these to women universally.

For example, by portraying women with Mussiro, a white mask used by Makhua women, Manuela revisits both the rituals of transition which mark a female’s journey to adulthood in Makhua society as well as female social status norms generally in that community. Manuela uses figurative human forms to create works of conceptual meaning that center the relationship between viewer and subject.

Manuela’s artistic interests were stirred up by the vibrant art scenes in Maputo, Dar-es-Salaam and visits to studios in Paris were she lived.  Manuela’s love for drawing led her to an art college in Ireland where she obtained an MA in Art & Process. With a background in Social Anthropology, Manuela’s research process involves field work, conversations with people, combined with archival material to develop her themes. Her figurative work and portraits are Manuela’s form to express her work, often revisiting Paul Gauguin and Lynette Yiadom-Boakye for inspiration.  

Manuela’s body of work in this collection are about women of various ages and stages in their lives.  Mostly painted in oils, through their gaze, Manuela tries to draw viewers behind her subjects’ visible and invisible masks  - to question, to challenge assumptions and to provoke conversations.