{"id":1451,"date":"2025-08-22T15:02:45","date_gmt":"2025-08-22T15:02:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/?p=1451"},"modified":"2025-08-26T15:59:46","modified_gmt":"2025-08-26T15:59:46","slug":"maria-nepomucenos-mixed-media-sculptures-writhe-with-ancient-symbolism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/22\/maria-nepomucenos-mixed-media-sculptures-writhe-with-ancient-symbolism\/","title":{"rendered":"Maria Nepomuceno\u2019s Mixed-Media Sculptures Writhe with Ancient Symbolism"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Maria<\/p>\n

Through millennia of artistic expression and within the natural world, the ubiquitous spiral continues to mesmerize. In ancient traditions, the form often represents cycles. The triskele, for example, consists of three interlocking spirals thought to symbolize death, life, and rebirth or the triad of mind, body, and spirit. Spirals also emerge naturally in seashells and plants, sometimes linked to the concept of the golden mean, also known as the \u201cdivine ratio<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Maria Nepomuceno<\/a>, the spiral\u2019s occurrence in nature\u2014along with its spiritual significance relating to time and energy in perpetual flow\u2014underpins a vibrant multimedia practice. Her forthcoming exhibition, Cunh\u00f3<\/em>, which opens next month at Sikkema Malloy Jenkins, emphasizes abundance. Iconographic references to female anatomy, jars, ceramic vessels, baskets, and seashells\u2014the latter of which are emblematic of fertility and wealth\u2014emphasize flourishing interactions and growth.<\/p>\n

\"an
\u201cAbra\u00e7a\u00e7o\u201d (2025), strings, necklace beads, straw, ceramics, resin, and wood, 59 x 50 3\/4 x 15 3\/4 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A made-up word, Cunh<\/em>\u00f3 takes its title from a nickname Nepomuceno\u2019s mother gave to her. Employing traditional Brazilian craftsmanship, the artist creates undulating forms that hang on the wall or nestle into the juncture where perpendicular surfaces meet. Her sculptures are simultaneously soft and firm, meandering and structured. From a distance, they can be alternately read like magnified, amorphous, biological cells or what the gallery describes as vast \u201cmacrocosmic landscapes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whorling beaded and woven forms envelop pearlescent bottle gourds or evoke tropical flowers with prominent stamens. In \u201cAbra\u00e7a\u00e7o,\u201d for example, which in Portuguese means \u201chug\u201d or \u201cembrace,\u201d a faceless female figure with a serpentine tongue encircles a large white shell and other amorphous shapes with long, slender arms. Other pieces, like \u201cMar Amor,\u201d evoke an ouroboros, an ancient symbol usually consisting of a snake or dragon eating its own tail, which represents self-creation, interconnection, and eternal cycles.<\/p>\n

Incorporating ceramics, wood, beads, straw, string, and other found materials, Nepomuceno merges the organic and inorganic in shapeshifting pieces that represent a continuous cycle of reproduction, nourishment, plenitude, and care.<\/p>\n

Cunh\u00f3<\/em> runs from September 2 to October 11 in New York City. Explore more by the artist on Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"a
Detail of \u201cAbra\u00e7a\u00e7o\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"an
\u201cMar Amor\u201d (2025), strings, necklace beads, resin, and wood, 42 1\/2 x 41 3\/8 x 9 7\/8 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"an
\u201cPlanta desejo\u201d (2025), wood, straw, necklace beads, resin, string, and ceramic, 74 3\/4 x 68 7\/8 x 65 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"a
Detail of \u201cPlanta desejo\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"an
\u201cLingua Espiral\u201d (2025), string, beads, wood, glass, fabric, paint, and ceramics, 59 x 65 x 13 3\/4 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"an
\u201cUntitled\u201d (2025), necklace beads, straw, ceramic, and resin, 35 3\/8 x 27 1\/2 x 11 3\/4 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"an
\u201cUntitled\u201d (2025), strings, necklace beads, wood, paper, and resin, 51 1\/8 x 35 3\/8 x 11 3\/4 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"an
\u201cUntitled\u201d (2025), braided straw, necklace beads, ceramics, and resin, 55 1\/8 x 45 1\/4 x 23 5\/8 inches<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member<\/a> today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article Maria Nepomuceno\u2019s Mixed-Media Sculptures Writhe with Ancient Symbolism<\/a> appeared first on Colossal<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Through millennia of artistic expression and within the natural world, the ubiquitous spiral continues to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1453,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1451"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1451"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1451\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1464,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1451\/revisions\/1464"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1453"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1451"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1451"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.beatlesfansunite.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1451"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}