Zodiac: The Magic of the Four Elements is renewed in Maria Bernardino's print artwork, winner of the Young Art Prize from CPS in 2019. In the series of 36 pieces dedicated to this theme, Water, Earth, Fire, Air, and their respective zodiac signs take on the symbolism of the colors associated with them. The vibrant red of fire, fueling all passions and representing the intensity and brilliance of life itself. The blue of water, the quintessential color of the imagination, the starting point of the great journey of dreams, and the cradle of all living forms. The golden yellow, solar and alchemical, representing a land whose destiny is to expand and resonate with all its creatures in the light of a celestial body that symbolizes wholeness and the divine. The gray of the air, which within its transparent atmosphere is the source of great transformations, a metaphor for both small and great mysteries.

The artist renews a tradition that spans many centuries, now reborn in the purity and magic of her simultaneously plastic and poetic signs.

Maria João Fernandes

AICA - International Association of Art Critics

Artist Statement:

According to the classical definition, Astrology is a pseudoscience that posits that the relative positions of celestial bodies provide information about personality, human relationships, and other personal and transpersonal spheres. It can be considered a divinatory activity when used as an oracle, but it can also be used as a tool for understanding human emotions, highlighting emotional aspects by comparing certain tendencies with elements of each individual's personality.

Zodiac was created throughout a journey of discovery of the elements that make up the horoscope: affinities (the tendencies of each sign), aspects (distances between the angles of each planet), planets (which coexist with the signs), houses (which divide the sky of the astrological chart), and the horizon line (from which the ascending sign emerges, making the chart precise). Balancing interpretative freedom with the heritage of a long tradition governed by mathematically exact elements, Zodiac is the result of a journey that seeks to resemble the task of an astrologer — interpreting, setting the tone intuitively and inspired, and playing with the field of possibilities within the astrological universe.

Maria Bernardino, Dec. 2021