Bella Cardim

Bella Cardim was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and lives and works in Miami, Florida. Cardim received a Master of Fine Arts from Miami International University of Art & Design (2023). Her practice explores the emotional complexities of food, body image, and nourishment through mixed media, textiles, and photography. Selected solo exhibitions include No One is an Island (2023), Mifa Gallery, Miami, Florida; The MFA Showcase: Year 2 (2023), The Bonnier Gallery, Miami, Florida; Feria Clandestina (2022), Miami, Florida. Selected group exhibitions include Unraveling Surrealism: Celebrating Women’s Narratives through Contemporary Fiber Art (2024), Pinecrest Gardens, Miami, Florida; At Different Speeds (2024), Uncool Gallery, Brooklyn, New York; Visions from Inside the Walls (2024), Coral Gables Museum, Miami, Florida. Cardim was selected for the Florida Biennial (2022-2023), Art and Culture Center, Hollywood, Florida, and her work is in The Rodriguez Collection (MOCAA Collection). She also received the Director’s Choice Award from Art Fluent’s ConTEXT II (2023), and her work has been showcased in notable exhibitions across Miami, New York, and São Paulo. In October 2024, Cardim will begin a residency at The Laundromat Art Space, where she will further explore the themes of emotional nourishment and the weight of societal expectations.


Artist Statement

My life has always revolved around food. The complexities of flavors, textures, and aromas, along with the social rituals surrounding meals, have always intrigued me. As a conceptual artist, I explore emotional nourishment and body image using mixed media, textiles, and photography. My practice delves into the interplay between food, identity, and societal expectations, often drawing from personal experiences of emotional eating and body dysmorphia. Each series I create serves as a unique lens through which I investigate these intricate connections, where materiality is essential to making my emotions tangible.

Influenced by artists like Louise Bourgeois, whose work explores emotional transparency and the use of physical objects to convey complex feelings, and Sophie Calle, known for her deeply personal investigations of identity and intimacy, I invite reflection on consumption, self-perception, and cultural norms. By articulating unseen and underrepresented struggles, and highlighting the emotional facets of eating disorders, I aim to facilitate discussions around body image awareness and mental well-being. This endeavor is both self-exploration and a universal call for introspection and a collective rethinking of societal paradigms that shape our understanding and behaviors.


http://www.bellacardim.com