After treatments for breast cancer, Madalena Passeiro decided to change her life and dedicate herself to art, until then a leisure activity. She made a series of artistic works, but instinct and faith led her to a very personal interpretation of Maria (Mary) which ended by inspiring a project proposed by Hospital da Luz in the context of a Pink October campaign on prevention and care in breast cancer – thus she created “Maria da Luz”, the central figure of an exhibition with several works by the artist, which will be open to the public until November 13. “À LUZ” (In the light), hosted at Hospital da Luz Lisboa indoor garden , gathers about 30 works from the last six years by this self-taught painter. In the centre of it all is “Maria da Luz”, an imposing canvas of two meters by forty centimetres high and forty centimetres width. The result of “a perfect combination”, in the words of the author: “This is a figure reminding Mary, but without the baby, in pink robes and wrapped in the colours of Hospital da Luz, representing embracement, care and welcoming”. The exhibition is marked by the diversity of works, some old, some specifically made for the occasion. We have “Acaso” (Chance), a garden of planted colourful hearts all dissimilar; the watercolours on “Ser” (Being), “uncontrollable” like the technique used, and therefore “unique”; a self-portrait that puzzles us for it has no face; and “Caleidoscópio” Kaleidoscope) composed of repeated shapes and colours translating words and emotions. We also have “Fiore” (Flowers), starting from pigments that disperse – that the artist used to create flowers expressing “how it is always possible to make beautiful the uncontrollable that happens to us” –, and “Bailarinas” (Ballerinas) that transmit the beauty and diversity of the female body. On the whole, stand out a few works inspired in memories from childhood, such as “Jardim japonês” (Japanese garden) filled with different plants as was the one of her grandparents, and “Laser”, the name of her father’s boat, with colourful loose sails, as she recalls them at the moment of departure in racing. And of course, there is “Corpo de todas” (Body of all) , a ceramic composition in pink and blue made in partnership with Mónica Cerne, where arise the first “Maria” and other female figures in her works (“Ana” and “Fátima”) . “It represents the relation between us, women, and care, between maternity and this support net that is built around the hospital, and also the care relations between women and families”, she explains. “So that others may feel what I felt” At the age of 38, after taking courses in management and nursing, after working as a stewardess and dealing with cancer, Madalena Passeiro says that she no longer sees herself doing anything other than art. “With a cancer at 34, I have had to stop and realized that I would not be able to fly again, because of the professional rhythm involved. I was painting since 2020, so I thought: now I am going to do what I like doing. And things just happened”. Everything has been happening in a “natural” way: “’Maria’ started to be a scribble of that moment and what I was feeling. In fact, all my pieces have that characteristic: they are fast and heartfelt art. And my goal is for people to feel what I felt when creating these works ”. Her personal history of breast cancer, discovered by chance and at her insistence, gives this collaboration with Hospital da Luz “great significance”. Therefore, it is never too much to recall the message that the artist wrote for the campaign, addressing directly women: “In our busy days, among all that we do for others, taking care of ourselves and our health is one of the greatest proofs of love we can give ourselves, but that we often leave for later. And it should not be. May ‘Maria da Luz’ remind you of the all-important prevention gesture in this month of breast cancer: the annual mammogram. May she accompany you and remind that you deserve the same care you offer those you love”. Based on “Maria da Luz”, Madalena Passeiro also created a series of items for Hospital da Luz – from pins to t-shirts, cups, notebooks, fans, and illustrations – that can be purchased (only until October 30) at the same location of the exhibition. Revenues revert to EVITA , association that supports people affected with hereditary cancer and respective families. Date and time: 26 October to 13 November, from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. (9 p.m. on weekends) Place: Hospital da Luz Lisbo, floor -1, indoor garden
