Mónica de Miranda
Saturday, September 7, 2024 - Sunday, March 9, 2025
Interdisciplinary artist Mónica de Miranda’s "Path to the Stars" (2022) explores the legacy of anti-colonial resistance in Angola. The video follows a female protagonist from dawn to dusk as she journeys down the Kwanza River. Eventually, she reaches the river’s mouth, where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean and where the Portuguese invaded Angola in the late 16th century. During her journey, the woman confronts her own “shadow self” through shifting moments in time. Past, present, and future bleed together through various scenes and characters connected to the river. The poetic journey is situated in a space of imagination and liberation that is at once real and utopian.
Mónica de Miranda’s work sits at the intersection of history and fiction. In her research-based practice, de Miranda examines colonial histories, geography, and identity by weaving together personal stories and narratives of collective memory to explore the relationship between humans and nature as a source of healing and reparation.
Organized by Hannah Klemm, Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, Blanton Museum of Art
Gallery TextMónica de Miranda’s work sits at the intersection of history and fiction. In her research-based practice, de Miranda examines colonial histories, geography, and identity by weaving together personal stories and narratives of collective memory to explore the relationship between humans and nature as a source of healing and reparation.
Organized by Hannah Klemm, Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, Blanton Museum of Art
Mónica de Miranda’s work sits at the intersection of history and fiction. In her research-based practice, de Miranda employs a variety of sources that examine colonial histories, geographies, and identities. She deftly weaves together personal stories and narratives of collective memory grounded in her perspective as a Portuguese artist of Angolan descent.
Path to the Stars (2022) explores the legacy of anti-colonial resistance in Angola through a poetic journey. The video follows a female protagonist from dawn to dusk as she travels the Kwanza River to the Atlantic Ocean, the site of the 16th-century Portuguese invasion. The scenes are at once real and utopian—situated in the artist’s imagination and centralized around the idea of liberation. While the main character is unnamed, she is inspired by a guerrilla fighter who fought and died in the Angolan War of Independence (1961–1974). The title of the work is an homage to a poem of the same name by Agostinho Neto (1922–1979), who served as Angola’s first president from 1975–1979, after the country gained independence. The poetic script is spoken by actors in Portuguese with English subtitles.
In tracing the flow of the river, Path to the Stars is nonlinear in its narrative—viewers can enter the work at any point. Past, present, and future bleed together through surreal scenes and juxtapositions of characters connected to the river, asking us to question constructs of time and history. The importance of the past is represented through nods to anti-colonial freedom fighters, with the instability of the present appearing in the desire to belong in modern society. A future projection is conveyed by the river itself—emphasizing our need to reach an understanding with nature.
La obra de Mónica de Miranda se encuentra en la intersección entre la historia y la ficción. En su práctica basada en la investigación, de Miranda emplea una variedad de fuentes que examinan las historias, las geografías y las identidades coloniales. Entreteje con destreza las historias personales y las narrativas de la memoria colectiva basándose en su perspectiva como artista portuguesa descendiente de familia angoleña.
Path to the Stars [Camino a las estrellas] (2022) explora el legado de la resistencia anticolonial en Angola por medio de un recorrido poético. El video sigue a la protagonista desde el amanecer hasta el atardecer mientras viaja por el río Kwanza al océano Atlántico, el lugar de la invasión portuguesa del siglo XVI. Las escenas son a la vez reales y utópicas, situadas en la imaginación de la artista y centradas en la idea de la liberación. Aunque el personaje principal no tiene nombre, está inspirada por un combatiente guerrillero que luchó y murió en la Guerra de Independencia de Angola (1961–1974). El título de la obra es un homenaje a un poema del mismo nombre de autoría de Agostinho Neto (1922–1979), quien fue el primer presidente de Angola entre 1975 y 1979, después de que el país se independizó. Los actores dicen el guion poético en portugués, con subtítulos en inglés.
Al seguir el flujo del río, Path to the Stars [Camino a las estrellas] no es lineal en su narrativa: los espectadores pueden entrar a la obra en cualquier momento. El pasado, el presente y el futuro se mezclan en escenas surrealistas y yuxtaposiciones de personajes conectados al río, pidiéndonos que nos cuestionemos las construcciones del tiempo y la historia. La importancia del pasado se representa por medio de alusiones a luchadores por la libertad anticolonialistas, y la inestabilidad del presente aparece en el deseo de pertenecer a la sociedad moderna. El río en sí transmite una proyección del futuro, destacando nuestra necesidad de llegar a un entendimiento con la naturaleza.