My interest in past cultures led me to create the Nostalgia series, with the intent to showcase antique objects that bring back memories and invite the viewer to think about times when things were done in a different manner.
Antique stores have been a familiar place to me ever since I was a costume designer in Brazil and used to dive in the hidden stories of dust covered garments. Now, as an artist, these stores are still where my creative process begins. My eyes look for objects that are meaningful to me, objects that I grew up around at my family’s home, or that are aesthetically pleasing. These objects carry stories from the decades in which they were used. In order to represent the mood of those time periods in my paintings, I develop a background design for each of them inspired by patterns and colors that were popular in clothes and interiors during those times.
-- Luiza Maia is a Brazilian artist currently based in San Francisco, where she received an MFA degree from the Academy of Art University. Prior to moving to California, Luiza worked as a fashion and costume designer in Rio de Janeiro before discovering her passion for fine arts at the School of Visual Arts and The Art Students League of New York.