Last Summer, during an Art Residency in Hämeenlinna
(sponsored by the Arts Association Kaputa ry ), I could
get a little insight into “the Finnish way of life” – its
Culture,Traditions and Legends/Folklore. THAT
fascinated me in such a scale that I decided to look a
little deeper into Finland’s Mythology! Doing so, I came
across Ilmatar in Elias Lönnrot’s national epic Kalevala.
Meeting Ilmatar made me think about our (Brazilian)
own Legends. I had to go a long way back in our history
to find the essence of most our beliefs and superstitions.
After days of researching, I understood that lots of our
“fables” were tailored by the Portuguese (our
“colonizers”)…I had to dig a little further back. SO I did!
I was looking for legends about women, created and
delivered by our natives – I wanted to have a kind of
Brazilian Ilmatar’s counterpart! I found a few, and
decided to concentrate my efforts in getting to know two
of them a litte better: Caipora and Vitoria Régia.
Brazil is a large country, with so many different regions
and native tribes, therefore with a huge variety of
costumes and ways of delivering legends (citing just a
few of these differences).

I am Kelyne Reis, visual artist born in Brazil – living in
Germany.
I am a painter totally passionated about COLORS and
SHAPES. These Shapes, in my paintings, are
delimitated by lines- sometimes almost invisible, others

pretty wide -, and filled with bold Colors, which are
smooth applied in many layers, barely showing brush
strokes. THIS is my signature, and can be seeing
throughout all my works.
One can already realize that this project wasn’t an easy
task! But, since I am not a type of person who gives up
very easily, I did find versions of these two legends,
which kept showing up in various Brazilian areas and
maintaining the same Narrative.
Voilá, I had found my subjects!!! When I say; “I had
found my subjects”, I do mean mine!! I was not
interested in doing a simple illustration, but work with the
symbolism of those “Women”.
Now, a next challenge has just emerged: How to mingle
Caipora and Vitoria Régia in a painting without losing
any of them?
But, before I get into a short explanation of my painting,
I want to introduce these Legends to you.
At this point I need to stress that the two Brazilian
legends, I have chosen, are not a mirroring of Ilmatar,
but they are also legends about Women’s power,
women’s love/admiration, and also their connection with
nature.
If you are Finnish, the probability you already know
Ilmatar is very high, but if you aren’t, it would be helpful
to make you familiar with her. So, let’s go!
Ilmatar or the virgin spirit of the air
In the night of times, were only primal waters and Sky.

Ilmatar descended to rest for 700 years in the calm
waters. When she woke up she found a bird that she
hosted on her lap. There, the bird felt safe and laid
seven eggs: six were made of gold and one was made
of iron. As the bird was incubating its eggs, Ilmatar’s lap
started to warm up until it was burning. Out of reflex, she
moved her leg, which dislodged the eggs from their nest
of flesh. They fell and shattered in the waters, amniotic
cradle of the world. The bottom of the eggshells formed
the land while the top formed the sky. The white of the
eggs created the Moon and the stars while the yolks
became the Sun.  
Ilmatar continued to float for a few hundred years
admiring the spectacle of her creation. Then, an urge to
create popped again. Everything she touched came to
life. Each of her moves was a silent incantation to
life. Her footprints became pools for fish, and simply by
pointing out with her finger, she created the contours of
the land.
Impregnated by the water, she gave birth to the first
man, called Väinämöinen.
The epic Kalevala shows how strong the role of women
has always been in Finland.

Here are the Brazilian ones:
Caipora
The Caipora, also known as ”Caipora do Mato”, is a
figure from Brazilian folklore who is considered to be the
protector of animals and guardian of the forests.

Her origins lie in indigenous Tupi-Guarani mythology.
From the Tupi, the word ”caipora” (caapora) means
”inhabitant of the bush”.
When she senses that a hunter is entering the forest
with the intention of killing animals, she lets out loud
howls and screams to scare them away.
Her intention is to take care of these animals and protect
the environment. Legend has it that her strength is
greatest on holy days and weekends.
Caipora’s main characteristics:
Caipora is a dwarf Indian woman with red hair. She lives
naked in the forests and has the power to dominate and
resurrect animals. Her main aim is to defend the
ecosystem, so she sets traps and confuses hunters.
She appears riding a wild pig.
Using various noises, she distracts hunters by offering
false clues until they get lost in the forest.
In addition, she has the power to control animals and
therefore scares them away when she senses that
something bad might happen.

Vitoria Régia
The legend of the Victoria Regia, one of the best known
in Brazilian folklore, belongs to northern culture because
it was born in this region of the country. It explains the
origin of the aquatic plant Vitória-Régia, which is a
symbol of the Amazon.
According to legend, the moon (Jaci) chooses the most
beautiful women from the indigenous peoples and takes
them with her. In one tribe lives the beautiful warrior
Naiá, who hears this story and dreams of being taken

away by the moon. However, she is warned by the older,
more experienced indigenous people, as those who
have gone away with the moon have lost their bodies
and become stars. Naiá pays no heed to the warnings of
her people. She is obsessed with the moon and even
falls ill, as she no longer eats or drinks, but only admires
the moon. On a very bright moonlit night, Naiá comes to
the shore of a lake and sees the reflection of the moon
on the surface of the water. She thinks the moon has
come to bathe in the lake. She therefore enters the
water and drowns in the depths of the lake. The moon,
observing the tragedy, transforms Naiá into a special
star, different from all the other stars in the sky: it turns
her into a star of the water – the Victoria Regia. Only
during the night does the flower open to the moon and
spread its sweet scent.
Versions of the legend:
There are different versions of the legend, but they are
all about an indigenous girl who has an obsession with
the moon and therefore drowns. She becomes a star of
the water, the giant water lily Victoria Regia. In some
legends, the moon is a male deity, in other variations,
the moon is a goddess.

Hopefully, having an idea about these three women will
help you to “read” my painting!

My current work is still in progress, and has “BRAZIL
meets FINLAND (Similarities through folklore)” as a
temporary title. It is 200cmx200cm large (in four pieces
of 100cmx100cm ea.). There are leaves and bushes
representing the forest, a Caipora being transformed,

through lines, into a Vitoria Regia, and a huge variety of
color hues mostly not related to real environment.
This painting is part of an art project in collaboration with
Minttu Saarinen (https://www.minttusaarinen.com/), and
will be part of the Exhibition “SOMEWHERE A WHILE
BACK” by visual artists, members of the Finnish Arts
Alliance Kaputa ry
(https://kulttuurimedia.fi/meista/kaputa-ry/), which is
taking place in the Hämeenlinna Main Library
from July 22. till August 11.2024
.
That is all for now about my painting, since it still has a
long way to go till it’s completed. But, hopefully, in a
couple of weeks I will be able to share more details, and
even images.

References:
.Vitoria Regia
https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/folclore/vitoria-regia.htm
https://www.todamateria.com.br/lenda-da-vitoria-regia/
.Caipora
https://www.todamateria.com.br/caipora/
https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/folclore/caipora.htm
.Ilmatar
https://www.ilmatardoula.fi/ilmatar