Stitching Stories: Madalena Santos Reinbolt’s Visionary Art at AFAM

The American Folk Art Museum (AFAM) will present Madalena Santos Reinbolt: A Head Full of Planets from February 12 to May 25, 2025. Bringing together more than half of the Brazilian self-taught artist's known works, the exhibition features 42 textile pieces and oil paintings, including her striking quadros de lã—intricately embroidered 'wool paintings' crafted from hundreds of colorful threads. Through themes of gender, race, and socio-economic influences, it offers a deeper look at her unique perspective. This marks the most extensive exploration of her work and her first solo museum exhibition outside of Brazil.

The exhibition explores Santos Reinbolt’s life and artistic journey. In the early 1950s, while working as a live-in cook for a wealthy household, she began making art in her free time. In the mid-1960s, while working in another household, she turned to embroidery and created the art that would define her legacy.

The exhibition is divided into four sections, each focusing on different parts of her life and work. One looks at how her art connects to race, labor, and identity, following her journey from rural Bahia to Brazil’s richer cities. Another section explores how her art mixes time, space, and racial dynamics, from scenes of everyday life to imagined landscapes. The final section places her intricate wool embroideries within Brazil’s long textile traditions and shows how they influenced other contemporary Brazilian artists. Recordings of interviews featuring Santos Reinbolt add a deeply personal dimension to the experience, allowing visitors to hear the artist’s own words.

Madalena Santos Reinbolt: A Head Full of Planets offers an essential look at an artist whose work redefines embroidery as both personal expression and cultural storytelling. AFAM is  offering a series of virtual programs in conjunction with the exhibition. First, on Friday, February 14, at 1:00pm, join the Virtual Insights program, where AFAM’s Curatorial Chair Valérie Rousseau and Curatorial Assistant Dylan Blau Edelstein will discuss the exhibition’s themes and artistic significance. On Thursday, February 20, at 1:00pm, the museum will host Folk Art Reflections, an interactive series designed for individuals living with dementia, their care partners, and family members. RSVP by emailing egronke@folkartmuseum.org or calling 212-595-9533 x 381. Then, on Sunday, March 2, at 1:00pm, the 2025 Anne Hill Blanchard Uncommon Artists Lecture will present new research on 20th-century Latin and South American artists, including Jose Antonio da Silva, Helio Melio, and Rosa Elena Curruchich. Finally, on Tuesday, March 4, at 11:00am, a Verbal Description Tour will be available for individuals who are blind or have low vision. To register, email education@folkartmuseum.org. 

While visiting the Museum, be sure to check out AFAM’s other exhibition, Somewhere to Roost, which explores the concept of home through 60 works drawn from the Museum’s collection, including paintings, textiles, photographs, and sculptures. Afterward, stop by the Museum Shop for one-of-a-kind, handmade treasures.

Images: Untitled Works, 1965 - 1976, Madalena Santos Reinbolt. Courtesy of the American Folk Art Museum