Sunday solitude… This beautiful painting of a lone figure smoking was made by the Brazilian multidisciplinary artist Antonio Obá. According to Mendes Wood DM gallery, Obá often “incorporates Brazilian religious icons [into his art] to question a racial and political identity memory”. This artwork is titled Figura Votiva (or Votive Figure), referencing the idea of votive offerings—objects presented to the gods in gratitude of a vow fulfilled. These are a frequent feature in Obá’s multilayered work, as a means of creating discussion around what Obá terms “the interaction between ritualistic and historic perspectives”.
