Benedito José dos Santos

Benedito José dos Santos was born in 1937 in Maceió, Alagoas State (AL). He learned to read on his own, looking at the labels on goods. When he was 15 years old he moved to Recife, Pernambuco State, where he began as a sculptor carving figures inspired by the shapes of roots and tree trunks that he would find. In a few years of activity, he specialized in making sacred images and saints. He is endowed with great aesthetic refinement and his figures are remarkable; his “pauper’s funeral” is an outstanding example. He has displayed his work in major art exhibitions at home and abroad, becoming distinguished as one of the top Brazilian folk artists.