Conceição dos Bugres

Conceição dos Bugres (1914 – 1984)

Conceição dos Bugres was a Brazilian sculptor of Indigenous origin, recognized as one of the greatest artisans of the Central-West region, especially Mato Grosso do Sul. Her work focuses on the creation of Indigenous figures called "Bugres," wooden sculptures that have become symbols of the art, culture, and identity of Mato Grosso do Sul. Due to her importance, the Legislative Assembly of Mato Grosso do Sul named an annual award in her honor: the Conceição dos Bugres medal, considered the "Oscar of artisans" in the state.

Conceição dos Bugres was born on December 8, 1914, in Povinho de Santiago, Rio Grande do Sul. As a child, she migrated with her family to Mato Grosso do Sul due to the persecution of Indigenous peoples during the European immigration to Southern Brazil. At the age of six, she moved to Ponta Porã, a city on the border with Paraguay, where she grew up in close contact with nature, learning from her father the use of medicinal herbs and developing skills as a healer. In 1957, she moved to Campo Grande, the state capital. One of her sons, the painter Ilton Silva, also became a regionally recognized artist and was instrumental in promoting Conceição dos Bugres' work.

In the 1960s, Conceição dos Bugres' work gained visibility when her son presented her sculptures to artist Humberto Espíndola and cultural producer Aline Figueiredo, founders of the Mato Grosso Arts Association (AMA), who became her first admirers and promoters. In the 1970s, already over 50, Conceição dos Bugres participated in regional and national exhibitions, receiving artistic recognition, although without achieving significant financial gains. She died in 1984, living in poverty.

The sculptures known as Bugres are human figures with indigenous features, usually made of wood, with dry, straight machete strokes, covered with beeswax and charcoal details. Conceição dos Bugres originally began carving cassava stalks, inspired by the natural shape that resembled human faces. Each piece had its own personality, despite presenting recurring characteristics, such as a plump body, upright posture, and flat head. She also classified some sculptures as "tame Indians" or "little black children," offering the latter as amulets to friends, a gesture of generosity and emotional connection. For Conceição dos Bugres, her sculptures had a life of their own, and her relationship with them was maternal: many were named and carefully individualized.

Conceição dos Bugres' work engages with various artistic traditions, including the Moai of Easter Island, Egyptian art, Kadiwéu totems, Tarsila do Amaral's Abaporu painting, Northeastern votive offerings, and Brancusi's minimalism. The term "bugre," historically pejorative, was reinterpreted by Conceição dos Bugres, becoming a cultural icon that evokes her ethnic origins and the persecution she suffered as a child by the so-called "bugreiros," who persecuted Indigenous peoples.

Conceição dos Bugres is considered the first sculptor from Mato Grosso do Sul to achieve national recognition. Along with Lídia Baís, she is one of the central figures in Mato Grosso do Sul art, although while Baís focuses more on classical art, Conceição dos Bugres has established herself in popular art. His sculptures are powerful symbols of the state's popular iconography and reflect the social and political conditions of Indigenous peoples in border regions. Despite this recognition, his work has been largely omitted from public collections; Most of the pieces are part of private collections, with exceptions such as the Afro-Brazilian Museum and Itaú Cultural.

In 1979, filmmaker Cândido Alberto da Fonseca made a documentary about Conceição dos Bugres, whose material deteriorated but was restored in 2016, becoming a heritage site of Mato Grosso do Sul. The artist's work received its first monographic museum exhibition in 2021, at MASP, entitled "Conceição dos Bugres: everything is of the nature of the world," curated by Fernando Oliva and assistant Amanda Carneiro, cementing her importance to Brazilian art.

Conceição dos Bugres' artistic legacy lives on through her descendants: after her death, her husband Abílio and her son Ilton continued to produce the Bugres, and currently her grandson Mariano Antunes Cabral Silva maintains the tradition, ensuring that the technique and family memory live on. As we complete 110 years since her birth in 2024, we celebrate Conceição dos Bugres' journey as a visionary artist, who transformed wood into living memory and consolidated the Bugres as symbols of resistance, creativity, and cultural identity of Mato Grosso do Sul.

Solo Exhibitions

1971 - Rio de Janeiro, RJ - 5 Artists from Mato Grosso, at the Ibeu Gallery in Copacabana
1972 - São Paulo, SP - Art/Brazil/Today: 50 Years Later, at the Colectio Gallery
1974 - São Paulo, SP - Biennial 74, at the São Paulo Biennial Foundation
2001 - Rio de Janeiro, RJ - Popular Expression, at the Light Cultural Center
2004 - Campo Grande, MS - Bugres: Conceição and its People, at the Museum of Contemporary Art of Mato Grosso do Sul (MARCO)
2004 - São Paulo, SP - Form, Color and Expression: A Collection of Brazilian Art, at the São Paulo Station
2021 - São Paulo, SP - Conceição dos Bugres: Everything is from the Nature of the World, at the São Paulo Museum of Art (MASP)