Nzuji De MAGALHÃES

Nzuji De Magalhães was born and raised in Angola. Her work combines Angolan artistic styles with the western skills of illusionistic drawing and painting that she learned as a college student in the United States. Entwining two essential perspectives of her diverse cultural background, De Magalhães uses fabrics, sand, beads, glitter, and yarn above oil-painted backgrounds to communicate the many interpretations foreseen in Angolan traditional and contemporary culture, and convey issues of stereotypes, ethnicity, and politics.

Nzuji De Magalhães has a Master of Fine Arts degree in Studio Art from the University of Southern California (USC) and twenty years of experience as a professional artist. Her mixed media works have been presented at the Studio Museum, Harlem, New York; MOAD Museum, San Francisco; BoxHeart Gallery, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and the Hammer Museum’s Made in LA Biennial exhibition. Expanding beyond the gallery and museum space, eight of De Magalhães works are permanently installed at the Bundy and Exposition Metro line in Santa Monica, CA. Titled And Here I Will Stay, the eight panels recreate Nzuji’s oil painted fabric and beaded paintings in mosaic and ceramic.

Visit the artist’s website: http://frowithsoul.com