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João das Alagoas’ most talented pupil used to have a dream that made her very anxious. Maria Luciene da Silva Siqueira, known as Sil, was born in Cajueiro (AL) but grew up in Capela. She never had much option apart from working in the sugar cane plantations or the local sugar factory. “Since I was a child I have dreamed that my hands were dirty and wet and I needed to dry them on a piece of cloth. It felt as if I was touching something, but I didn’t know what it was. When I woke up I was holding the sheets tightly. The dream would go away, then come back.”
Unemployed and with a small child she heard that someone was teaching crafts stuffs in town. “Believe me, when I saw people working the clay, the sensation I had in my dream returned. When I touched the wet clay I understood. That’s what I used to feel in my dream. For my dream to come true, all I needed was João das Alagoas to teach me.” In four years of study she became as good as her teacher. She quickly started sculpting the things her heart yearned for. Today, she knows she wouldn’t be able to live without working with clay. “In the beginning I had to work hard not to copy João. I had to search inside myself for something of my own and I think I have succeeded.” |
