ARTIST ERNESTO KUNDE

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

Ernesto Kunde was born and raised on a farm in Paraíso do Sul, Brazil in 1973. in 1994, he traveled to Germany to learn agriculture and discover his family roots. Upon returning to Brazil in 1995, he continued his work in agriculture (corn) and began his artistic journey by experimenting with works on paper: drawings and controlled coffee stains. In 2006, Kunde moved to Miami, where he found new inspiration in the local environment and began his professional journey as an artist. He was immediately drawn to mangroves because the roots reminded him of those of corn back home. Over the years, he has experimented with various mediums including acrylic on canvas and linen, stainless steel and wood cuts. Although mangroves and the South Florida tropical landscape remain the dominant subjects, Kunde is constantly influenced by his surroundings. He is involved in environmental organizations and projects, using his art to support and share the importance mangrove forests have on our ecosystem.

Your greatest inspirations or influences?

My greatest inspirations are my surroundings and nature. I would also say a mix of artists like Basquiat and Warhol, etc

Tell us a bit about your creative process and what are you are looking forward to this year?

My creative process begins with nature. I like to go feel and experience nature, I feel present, sometimes I take pictures and I process that in my mind. That’s how it begins and this year what I am most looking forward to is going to openings!

How has this year changed your creativity or how you see the world changing moving forward?

This year was challenging because I missed being outside in nature but the same time it really made me think outside the box.

Do you think the art world needs to change, and if so how can it be improved.

Yes there’s always room for improvement, artists should have equal opportunity.

An icon of our time?

There’ are so many but personally I’d say Basquiat