Life's shades

My paintings are dramatic and subjective. I strive to portray human emotion and use dramatic colours in unusual ways to depict love, fear, happiness or peace.

I was born into an artistic environment.
My father Orley Silveira Pereira is an internationally renowned artist from Brazil. He was my first teacher and biggest critic. He had extensive knowledge of all forms of art, which
he passed on to me. My earliest memories are of watching him at work in his atelier. My mom used to say I never wanted to go to sleep so I could watch my dad at work.

When I was 11, he gave me his paints, a canvas and brushes and asked me to start by copying masters such as Picasso and Van Gogh. When it was time to enter university, there was no doubt in my mind as to what I wanted to major in.

I did very well in my classes. After graduation, I took up a two-year Baccalaureate course in painting at the Faculdade de Belas Artes de Sao Paulo – the College of Fine Arts in Sao Paulo. I had the good fortune of training under Calexto, the son of famed Brazilian painter Benedito Calexto.

Theoretical knowledge [alone] does not guarantee a career as a great artist. I believe that focusing too much on technique can curtail your [ability to express] and limit the emotional impact of your work. Every artist expresses himself or herself in a unique way. I use very strong colours and forceful brush strokes. One critic, noting the boldness of my strokes, commented that I painted like a man.

I think movement depicts life. That is why I use strong brush and spatula strokes. I love to paint flowers because they show my feminine side. In Brazil I worked for 10 years as a porcelain-drawing specialist, which involved designing different kinds of vases and urns. But in the UAE I am solely a painter.

I have experimented with a variety of styles such as impressionism, abstract and figurative forms of art. But after all these years, I have realised that I am an expressionist. Expressionism is an art premised on instinct. My skies can be yellow.

My horses are sometimes green or blue. This is because when I look at things, I want to capture the mood that I think they reflect.

I also enjoy working with bronze sculptures.I use strong curves and shapes to evoke a desired emotion.
My favourite sculpture is of a mare with her foal. When my daughter first saw it she asked: "Is that a human brain?"I guess art also depends a lot on the eye of the beholder.

Children understand the concepts behind art better.Adults are restricted because of their experiences in life. At my 'Passion with flying colours' exhibition at Qanat Al Qasba,
a 10-year-old boy figured that my bronze sculpture was of a woman embracing a horse. He was most thrilled when I told him that he had a gift for art.

I came to the UAE six years ago.
I had heard from other expatriates that they took a long time to adjust to this country. It took me five minutes. The moment I landed here I fell in love with the culture and the people – not to mention the colours of the desert. My children have adapted well to this country and are pursuing their graduation courses here. I have two sons, Leandro and Rifial and a daughter, Amanda. My husband Nivaldo is a veterinary surgeon.

The desert is a magical place bursting with life. Once while we were travelling, we saw a Bedouin on his camel and I immediately asked my husband to stop the car so that I could take a photograph. The man had a proud and honourable look on his face.

It seemed to me that he was the king of the desert! Using gestures I asked him if I could take his photo and that [picture] became the source of my painting Proud camel and Bedouin. I gain inspiration for my painting from photos I have taken of interesting people and places.

I am very thankful to art dealer Mari Gumarra for helping me start my career in the UAE.
I choose the themes for my art exhibitions. My most recent exhibition held at the Bastakiya in Bur Dubai was called 'Colours of the UAE'. Here, I tried to project the cultural magnanimity of the UAE. I love the architecture of the Shaikh Zayed Mosque and have done many paintings of it.

I also teach art practicals at the Sorbonne University in Abu Dhabi. I want to change my technique to figurative abstractionism and I have been experimenting with it. At first glance you may not be able to understand the painting but slowly the images will gain clarity. I feel this form of art gives me tremendous freedom of expression and fluency of form.

My other hobbies include running and working out in the gym.
As an artist I twist body into different postures while painting and if I am not fit, I would end up being in pain. I run about three kilometres, sometimes more, every day. I also love horses. They feature regularly in my paintings. They have great power and nobility.

I love to watch the sky at dawn. If you look closely, you will notice that each day begins with a different colour. That is the magic of the greatest painter of all – Nature.

For more information visit www.cmeneghetti.com

– As told to Zenifer Khaleel, an Abu-Dhabi-based freelancer