Tropicalia Sculpture

Mariana Rola Pereira was born in Macao with a mix of Cantonese and Portuguese culture, an Ecuadorian grandmother and a Chinese line somewhere two generations behind her. During her childhood she had the first contact with the Arraiolos craft during summer vacations at her grandparents country house. Studied Landscape Architecture in Portugal and her brimming curiosity led her to expand her creativity into textiles. She's now based in Italy and allowing her work to be inspired by the colors and landscapes of Umbria. Rola's ancestral heritage calls her to contemplate the world with different perspectives and experiences and that’s what she brings to her tapestries. The artist balances between a modernist approach in colors & shapes to create contemporary designs and to reflect different symbols into her pieces. Her designs bring a twist to the traditional Portuguese technique and has an unique way to tell a story. Her passion is an evolving process that can't be captured in a singular style rather than an expansion of several feelings and dialogs. The Arraiolos craft was the inspiration to create her body of work under the brand OdeRola. The name was inspired in the names of small villages of Alentejo (the original place where the 'Arraiolos Rugs' was born) that uses the prefix 'ode'. At the same time, Ode is a way to appreciate the meaning behind an ancestral Portuguese craft and to all things made by hand. A poetry to be contemplated, a curiosity to be pursued and a passion to be fulfilled.