In the print "Zodiac" by Maria Bernardino, winner of the Young Art Prize from CPS in 2019, the magic of the four elements is renewed. Within the set of 36 pieces dedicated to this theme, Water, Earth, Fire, Air, and their respective zodiac signs assume the symbolism of the colors associated with them. The fiery red represents the passion and intensity of life itself, while the blue of water is the color of imagination and the starting point of the great journey of dreams and the birthplace of all living forms. The golden yellow represents the solar and alchemical qualities of a land whose destiny is to expand and make all its creatures vibrate under the light of a celestial body that symbolizes totality and the divine. The gray of the air, within its transparent atmosphere, is the source of great transformations and a metaphor for both small and great mysteries.

The artist renews a centuries-old tradition that now resurfaces in the purity and magic of her simultaneously artistic and poetic signs.

Maria João Fernandes

International Association of Art Critics (AICA)

Artist's Statement:

According to the classical definition, Astrology is a pseudoscience that holds 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, comparing certain tendencies with elements of each individual's personality.

Zodiac was created throughout a journey of discovery of the elements that comprise the horoscope: affinities (tendencies of each sign), aspects (distances between the angles of each planet), planets (which coexist with the signs), houses (which divide the astrological chart's sky once again), and the horizon line (from which the rising sign emerges, making the chart precise). Between interpretative freedom and the inheritance of a long tradition governed by mathematically exact elements, Zodiac is the result of a journey that seeks to be similar to the task of the astrologer - interpreting, setting the tone intuitively and inspired, and playing with the field of possibilities that exists in the astrological universe.

Maria Bernardino, Dec. 2021