THE OTHER SACRED ART IN BRAZIL: THE CASE OF THE POMBAJIRA MENINA

Abstract

This text intends to raise questions about the visual manifestations of the religious art originated in Umbanda, especially in regard to its sculptural creation. This production, which is still an understudied subject, presents a wide and complex field yet to be explored, where the most unexpected and diverse relations among visualities, distant by time and space, come together through tridimensionality. When one hears the name Umbanda, one immediately thinks about afro-descendent religions, as Umbanda is indeed one of them. As consequence, formal connections between its art and the visual production of its African sources should be established. However, this is not the case, as it is made evident by the sculptures of this religion.