Making America

By Suzanne Révy and Elin Spring

Did you know that Massachusetts is home to one of the largest Brazilian immigrant populations in the United States? Brazilian artist Rosângela Rennó has created a pensive and immersive installation that searches visual archives for the political and cultural history of her native land and chronicles the experience of Brazilian immigrants moving to the United States. “Fazendo a América: Rosângela Rennó and Histories of Memory and Migration in Brazil” is on view at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston through August 2nd 2026. 

Translated from the Portuguese, “Fazendo a América” means “Making America,” and is an expression coined by Brazilians to describe the experience emigrating. Curated by Kristen Gresh, Estrellita and Yousuf Karsh Senior Curator of Photographs, the exhibition brings together six conceptual projects, including one commissioned by the museum. Utilizing vernacular photographs, archives and her own pictures, Rennó sheds light on the role of the archive as a keeper of history and memory. 

In 2006, it was discovered that Brazilian documentary albums made by Augusto Malta from the early 19th century and housed in the General Archives of the City of Rio de Janeiro, had been stolen. Rennó photographed remnants such as empty boxes, album covers and small notes in her series named for library call numbers “A01 [cod.19.1.1.43]—A27 [s|cod.23]” The installation constitutes a typology symbolizing the erasure of history, and functions as a metaphor for those who were “disappeared” under the military dictatorship of the 1960’s and 70’s.

In her “Red Series/Series Vermelha,” Rennó employs this deep color to transform small family portraits of men and boys wearing military uniforms into life-sized images. Their monumental presence is moving, endowing the anonymous sitters with dignity. The blood red color suggests the destructive nature of war and the inevitable death and destruction it can cause to families who serve. 

Rennó uses news pictures of protests in her series “Operation Spiders/Bellbirds/Taps/ Operação Aranhas/Arapongas/Arapucas.” Each triptych in the series is composed of a protest picture from the late 1960’s, one by Rennó from 1984 and one by Cia de Foto from 2013. The images are overlaid with embossed tissue papers, each era differentiated by a unique pattern. News pictures are the first draft of history, but also become evidence and a means to surveil protestors considered subversive through informants known as “bellbirds.” The anguish of living under dictatorships is palpable, and the tissue paper, commonly found in family photo albums, underscores the impacts of global histories on personal narratives.

The MFA, Boston commissioned piece, “Fazendo a América/Making America,” includes dozens of portraits of Brazilians living in Massachusetts and also portraits made in Minas Gerais, an area of Brazil where many of them are originally from. To protect their identities, Rennó obscures their faces under green hats, the dominant color of the Brazilian flag. Each person expresses their individuality through clothing and hand gestures. The juxtaposition between their anonymity and their personalities highlights this particularly tense time for immigrants. This era will prove to be a shameful stain on our history, but this vibrant installation celebrates both community and individuals, creating a welcoming environment in the museum for the diverse populations of Massachusetts.

For more information: https://www.mfa.org/exhibition/fazendo-a-america