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Rossini Rodrigues was born in São Borja in1966, a land proud of its landscape, the mixed ethnicity of its people, and of fathering two Brazilian presidents. Rossini started moulding clay and carving wood to make toys when he was 6 years old. “And so I taught myself. One day an architect said he would pay me a salary to make pieces he could sell. It worked, but then I had to go it alone. I never had a teacher. I used to watch others and make my stuff. My family is poor, and when things get tough I work as a fisherman. I’m proud of being among the 10 people chosen to represent Brazil in the Unesco Awards for Popular Art.” Rossini kneads the clay and makes Indians, regional scenes, things he sees and lives with. His pieces have won awards in many exhibitions and competitions in Rio Grande do Sul and Argentina, and his next ambition is to make large murals in cement. |
