11 November 2025
Art has always had the power to break down barriers — but rarely has that power been made so tangible, so literally touchable, as it was this November in Itu, São Paulo. In cooperation with the Atelier Eduardo Kobra, the Brazilian publishing house proudly presented "Art for All," a groundbreaking exhibition at the FAMA Museum that redefines what it means for art to be truly accessible to everyone.
Art You Can Touch
At the heart of "Art for All" lies a simple but profound idea: art should not be limited to those who can see it. The exhibition comprises 21 tactile artworks, each created using relief techniques that allow the contours, textures, and forms of the paintings to be felt as well as seen. For visitors with visual impairments, this transforms the act of viewing art into something entirely new — a physical, sensory encounter with images that would otherwise remain out of reach.
This is inclusion in its most direct and meaningful form. Rather than simply describing a painting to someone who cannot see it, "Art for All" invites visitors to trace the raised lines and textured surfaces of each piece with their own hands, building a genuine, personal connection to the artwork. In doing so, the exhibition does more than display art — it expands the very definition of who gets to experience it, and how.
This ambition — to promote inclusion and accessibility in art — sits at the very core of the exhibition's mission, and it is an ambition shared deeply by the community of mouth and foot painting artists whose work fills its walls. After all, few communities understand better than they do that artistic expression should never be limited by physical circumstance.
A Grand and Star-Studded Opening
The exhibition opened its doors with a grand celebration on 6 November, drawing an impressive gathering of guests from the worlds of culture, politics, and media. Among the most notable attendees was renowned street artist Eduardo Kobra himself, whose atelier co-hosted the exhibition and whose global reputation for large-scale, vibrant murals made his presence a particularly meaningful endorsement of the project.
Kobra spoke warmly about the collaboration, describing it as the beginning of a great partnership — a statement that hints at exciting possibilities for future joint projects between his atelier and the mouth and foot painting artists community. For an exhibition centred on breaking down barriers, this alliance between two very different corners of the art world felt entirely fitting: one artist celebrated for painting on a monumental scale across city walls worldwide, and a community of artists who create with a level of skill, patience, and determination that few could imagine, using only their mouth or foot to hold the brush.
Live Painting and a Meaningful Gift
The opening evening was brought vividly to life through a series of memorable highlights. Guests were treated to live painting demonstrations by mouth and foot painting artists Domingos Dupé Ferreira Silva and Bárbara Correa da Silva, who gave the audience a rare and moving opportunity to witness firsthand the extraordinary technique, focus, and artistry involved in painting without the use of one's hands. For many attendees, these live demonstrations were the emotional centrepiece of the evening — a direct, unfiltered window into the dedication behind every piece in the exhibition.
Adding a deeply personal touch to the celebrations, artist Marcelo da Cunha presented Eduardo Kobra with an original artwork as a gesture of appreciation and friendship, marking the collaboration between the two artistic communities with a tangible symbol of mutual respect and shared purpose. It was a quiet but powerful moment amid the excitement of the evening — one artist honouring another, in a gesture that spoke to the spirit of solidarity underpinning the entire "Art for All" project.
A Community United in Celebration
The opening was made all the richer by the presence of a remarkable group of mouth and foot painting artists, who gathered together to celebrate this milestone exhibition:
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Bárbara Corrêa
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Carlos Eduardo Fraga
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Eusclemia Vieira
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Daniel Ferreira
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Domingos Dupé Ferreira
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Eliana Zagui
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Gonçalo Borges
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Goret Chagas
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Ivanildo Gomes
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Leandro Portella
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Marcelo Cunha
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Marcos Paulo Machado
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Rita Boz
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Victor Santos
Fourteen artists in total, each contributing their presence and their spirit to a night that celebrated not just an exhibition, but an entire philosophy of what art can and should be. Their attendance transformed the opening from a simple gallery event into a genuine community celebration, filled with mutual encouragement, shared pride, and the kind of camaraderie that only comes from a community bound together by shared experience and shared passion.
Visit "Art for All"
For those inspired to experience this remarkable exhibition firsthand, "Art for All" remains open from 6 to 30 November, welcoming visitors Wednesday through Sunday, from 9 am to 5 pm, at the Atelier Eduardo Kobra. Whether you are able to see the paintings with your eyes or discover them through touch, the exhibition offers something rare: an art experience genuinely designed to include everyone, regardless of ability.
A Beginning, Not an End
As Eduardo Kobra himself suggested, "Art for All" feels less like a single, standalone event and more like the opening chapter of something bigger — a partnership between two remarkable artistic communities that, together, are pushing the boundaries of what accessible, inclusive art can look like. In bringing together tactile technique, extraordinary artistic skill, and a genuine commitment to inclusion, the exhibition at the FAMA Museum stands as a powerful reminder that art, at its very best, belongs to everyone.
Source: VDMFK News