Letícia Parente

Biography

Letícia Parente was born in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil in 1930. While originally pursuing a degree in chemistry, she became interested in art at the age of 41 and studied printing techniques at the Núcleo de Artes e Criatividade in Rio de Janeiro. Shortly after, she met other artists like Anna Bella Geiger and Sonia Andrade who introduced her to video art. Parente notably used this medium in her piece Auto-retrato (1975), a compilation of twenty-eight slides of photographs depicting a variety of subjects ranging from objects to people.

Alongside her discovery and love for art, Parente also continued to pursue her career in science. She completed her master's degree at Pontifícia Universidade Católica in analytical chemistry in 1972, and obtained her Livre Docente title in inorganic chemistry in 1976 through the Universidade Federal Fluminense. She would go on to teach chemistry in higher-education institutions in both Brazil and Italy, and also published a handful of books and articles based on her studies. Her most well known work is Marca Registrada, or "Trademark", a silent VHS film which depicts the artist sewing the words "MADE IN BRASIL" onto the sole of her foot. Another film from the same period, In, follows Parente as she suspends herself using a dresser hanger in a closet. According to artist Myriam Gurba, this video serves in part as an allusion to the execution of Brazilian journalist Vladimir Herzog by torture. The police attempted to cover-up his death as a suicide and he was found hanged in his prison cell. She published her first monograph, "Electronegativity," in 1969 and was awarded the Oto de Alencar Award in 1970. In 1972, she went to the Center for Art and Creativity to study. In 1976, she taught Inorganic Chemistry using the process of free teaching. In 1977, she won her position in UFC as Full Professor in the Small Press Festival Competition in Antwerp, Belgium. This allowed her to implement a postgraduate course on Inorganic Chemistry. In 1984 she got a postdoctoral intership at the Université de Nice, France for her work in inorganic chemistry. By 1985, she had her second Master's degree in Philosophy of Education from Fundação Getulio Vargas in Italy. In 1987, she helped start Science Education programs at the Science Center in Rio de Janeiro.

Filmography

Marca Registrada (1975) In (1975) Preparação I (1975) Eu armário de mim (1975) Preparação II (1976) Telefone Sem Fio (1976) Onde (1978) Quem Piscou Primeiro? (1978) O Homem do Braço e o Braço do Homem (1978) De Aflicti (1978) Especular (1978) Nordeste (1981) Tarefa I (1982)

Awards and nominations

Parente's monograph, "Electronegativity" (1969), won the Oto de Alencar Award in 1970.