Avocado Paintings, 2023.

Gouache and acrylic paint on dried avocado skin (Persea americana).

​

This project was born out of a need to demonstrate to my art students in the Brazilian Amazon that it is possible to make affordable and sustainable tools and materials for drawing, painting, and sculpture from edible plants. I recycle the skin of the avocados that I buy to eat, cutting them in different shapes while they are still fresh. The skin moves and changes its shape during the process of drying, taking sculptural forms, which I consider a shared creative process with nature. The painting decisions are only made after the skin dries and reaches its final form.  

 

© Frederico Câmara 2023.