Beatriz Milhazes

Colorful as Carmen Miranda, the paintings of Beatriz Milhazes are a mélange of iconographic Brazilian imagery, drawing from folk art, crafts, jewelry, tropical nature and the splash of carnival, all funneled through a modernist sensibility. Vibrant swirls, bold stripes, and intricate rosettes show both delicacy and sweep in a practice situated somewhere between figuration and abstraction. “Color is the core of my work,” Milhazes says in an extensive interview with fashion designer Christian Lacroix included in this compact catalogue covering paintings from 1996 to 2004, originally exhibited at the Domaine de Kerguehennec in Bignon, France. An essay by Simon Wallis of the Institute of Contemporary Art in London and an introduction by Frédéric Paul place this recent work within the context of her oeuvre.