São Paulo – Seven years ago, Marilza Ramos, artist from the southern Brazilian state of Santa Catarina, participated for the first time at Index, a furniture and decoration trade show in Dubai. She sold 38 pictures. Since then, trade shows have been her greatest showcase in the Arab world, but now, after her recent exhibit in Doha, Qatar, she has greater plans for the Middle East.
In 2011, during the Big 5 construction trade show, also in Dubai, Ramos met the businessman Mohamed Salem, from Doha. According to her, Salem works in many sectors and decided to invest also in the decoration segment. The artist’s picture exhibit at the Katara Gallery, in the Qatari capital city, in November last year, entirely organized by the entrepreneur, was their first joint project. The event was opened by the country’s minister of Culture, Hamad Bin Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari.
“He is opening a gallery in Doha where I shall show my work. There shall be about 50 to 80 pieces in permanent exhibition and which may be sold,” reveals Ramos. The Brazilian artist also says Salem has a construction project for a great hotel in Qatar, which shall be in part decorated by her.
The pictures and panels by the artist have a wooden base and are decorated with elements such as crystals, aluminum, glass and mirrors. In 2007, when she exhibited at Index, through her company MZ Artes, Ramos noticed her art was very well accepted by buyers in the region. “I saw that my work had a lot to do with the Arab culture,” she says.
Seen that the Arabs appreciate her work, the artist is already exploiting further opportunities in the region. “We are also planning on opening a studio in Doha and a showroom in Dubai,” she says. Ramos is to set dates for opening the studio, showroom and gallery in May, when she will be participating at Index once again.
As well as these projects, Ramos says she will also decorate a luxury home in the Jumeirah residential complex in Dubai, and a palace in Saudi Arabia. Currently, her pictures are being sold to twelve countries, among them, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Porto Rico, Canada, United States and Spain.
*Translated by Silvia Lindsey
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