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Kalina Rameiro

"When I was a child I used to spend the holidays at my grandparents' house in the city of Pedro II, in the state of Piauí, and I was always fascinated by the beautiful things that people did with their hands, like nets and crochet. It was also a time when my mother and I would go to buy the things I would need for school, and I would always run from her. She knew she'd find me where the coloring pencils and paints were.

"Just like my grandparents did, my mother restored the saint sculptures at the church of Our Lady of Conception. The German congregation would send these sculptures, and they often arrived damaged.

"As a student, my art work always stood out in class, and was regarded as the most creative. When I was a teenager, I started making my own accessories with pages from magazines that I folded into squares with adhesive tape. I also made bracelets with colorful threads. I remember that by the time I graduated from high school, I was pretty certain I knew what I wanted to do, even though I was aware that it was a fairly restricted field of work. However, I was certain it was what I wanted to do.

"I took a few aptitude tests, which confirmed what I always knew. I took the university entrance exams and I was admitted. I studied Theater Arts, Music, and Fine Arts.

"Art gives me the opportunity to express through sentiment that which I cannot express through words. Art is my passion!

"I now develop product lines for some Brazilian companies, and I have also published some of my work in renowned magazines. To me, art is an instrument of social responsibility that allows the inclusion of artists from deprived communities.

"At my studio I strive for social inclusion and I work with people who otherwise would not have a profession. They are trained in a craft so they may have a formal employment and be able to support their families. I work directly with about 20 people, and indirectly with other 15 people who are specialized in others field such as embroidery and wood carving.

"I strive to work with a variety of materials, as long as they are ecologically safe. I enjoy working with textures and embroideries you don't see anymore, so I try to study their history to make an accurate replica of past tendencies, and then stylize them in my own way and make them suitable for current trends.

"I think being associated with Novica will be a good thing, because they take care of looking into the history and origin of each product, and interpret the soul of its creator. In that sense, I hope my products will reach people around the world who appreciate art and seek to understand it."