Museu Vale, in partnership with the Museu da Língua Portuguesa, brings to Espírito Santo the exhibition “African Languages ​​that Make Brazil,” which opens on September 9th at the Anchieta Palace, the seat of the State Government. A record-breaking event for the Museu da Língua Portuguesa since its reopening, with over 240,000 visitors in São Paulo, the free exhibition arrives in Vitória as an initiative of the Vale Cultural Institute. Curated by musician and philosopher Tiganá Santana, it investigates the influences of African presences manifested in the languages, vocabulary, and pronunciation of Portuguese spoken in Brazil. The Vitória edition also features the unprecedented contribution of artists from Espírito Santo.

The exhibition runs until December 14th, Tuesday to Friday, from 8 am to 6 pm, and Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, from 9 am to 4 pm. It is suitable for all ages and includes accessibility resources such as audio description, sign language interpretation, and motor accessibility features. Educational visits for schools can be scheduled by calling (27) 3636-1031 and (27) 3636-1032 or by emailing educativo.mv@institutoculturalvale.org.

The configuration of Portuguese spoken in Brazil, its vocabulary and the way words are pronounced, is deeply influenced by languages ​​present in Sub-Saharan Africa, such as Yoruba, Ewe-Fon and those of the Bantu group. This is a history and a reality bequeathed by approximately 4.8 million African people violently brought to the country between the 16th and 19th centuries, during the period of the slave regime. Beyond language, this presence can be felt in cultural manifestations such as music, architecture, popular festivals and religious rituals.

In the exhibition, audiovisual productions, sound installations, Adinkra symbols (used as a writing system by the Ashanti people), and materials such as cowrie shells are some of the elements found in a space of memory and celebration, connecting past and present, orality and writing. Thus, the result is an immersive experience that recognizes and values ​​the constantly transforming Afro-diasporic heritages.

According to the director of the Museu Vale, Claudia Afonso, it is extremely important to bring to Espírito Santo an exhibition that connects history, identity, and culture. “This exhibition is a way to broaden access for the public of Espírito Santo to a unique cultural experience that values ​​diversity and recognizes the strength of African roots in the formation of Brazil. It is an opportunity to recognize the plurality of voices, words, and symbols that make up the richness of Brazilian culture, marked by the strength of ancestry,” she explains.

In this edition organized by the Museu Vale, in addition to works by artists who were part of the first exhibition in São Paulo, such as J. Cunha, Aline Motta, Rebeca Carapiá, and Goya Lopez, the focus shifts to the territory of Espírito Santo, with the participation of three artists: Castiel Vitorino Brasileiro, Natan Dias, and Jaíne Muniz. The articulation of these narratives, combined with dialogue with educators, communities, and local landscapes, reinforces the identity rooted in Espírito Santo.

The visual artist, writer, and psychologist Castiel Vitorino Brasileiro presents Me basta mirarte para enamorarme otra vez (It is enough for me to look at you to fall in love again), a study on calligraphic abstraction. Of Brazilian Bantu lineage, she explores her ethnic belonging in drawings that resemble Bakongo cosmograms, sacred Umbanda designs, and diagrams from other Bantu ethnic diasporas.

The multidisciplinary artist Natan Dias researches the confluence of materials and their technologies, and the displacement of memory in space-time. His work is part of the Movement series, in which the iron pieces pulsate as a collective body, in the artist’s definition.

And the visual artist and researcher Jaíne Muniz constructs abstract narratives with elements of the earth, seeking a reformulation of Black and gender-dissident existence. In the works Ser-horizonte and O que a água levou, the artist affirms earth, water, and wind as forces and creates language in the intertwining of body and landscape.

The exhibition also features the special participation of visual artist Rick Rodrigues, who embroidered 17 words incorporated into Portuguese originating from African languages, presented on wooden frames. Words such as marimbondo, dendê, canjica, minhoca, and caçula, and their meanings, will be highlighted.

African Languages ​​that Make Brazil is an initiative of the Vale Cultural Institute and the Museu Vale, conceived by the Museu da Língua Portuguesa, an institution of the Secretary of Culture, Economy and Creative Industries of the Government of the State of São Paulo; sponsored by Vale; Supported by the Government of the State of Espírito Santo, through the Department of Culture, and carried out by the Ministry of Culture, via the Law of Incentive to Culture.

Museu Vale Extramuros

Museu Vale, in its outreach phase, expands its activities and takes different artistic expressions and educational programs to squares, parks, schools, and other cultural institutions, reaching new audiences and encompassing other municipalities in Espírito Santo. Through exchanges and knowledge sharing, the Museum’s work continues its legacy of preserving cultural memory, enabling and fostering research, education, communication, and training initiatives, always closely connected to the productions of Espírito Santo.

Highlights include the latest exhibitions developed by the Museu Vale, which attracted more than 220,000 visitors: “Quebra-mapa”, “Quem Tem Medo de Bicho Pau?”, “Vidas em Cordel”, “Transitar o Tempo”, “Folhear”, “O Extraordinário Universo de Leonardo Da Vinci”, “Memórias do Futuro – Um olhar sobre a coleção do IHGB”, and the exhibition “De onde vêm os Sonhos – Coleção Andre a e José Olympio Pereira”.

Service: Exhibition “African Languages ​​that Make Brazil” – Espírito Santo Itinerary

Opening
Date: September 9, 2025
Time: 7 PM
Location: Anchieta Palace – João Clímaco Square, s/n – Centro, Vitória – ES
Free admission and open to all ages.

Visitation
Dates: September 10 to December 14
Hours: Tuesday to Friday, 8 AM to 6 PM; Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, 9 AM to 4 PM
Location: Anchieta Palace – João Clímaco Square, s/n – Centro, Vitória – ES
Free admission and open to all ages.