Bantera

João Gilberto Gourgel Santinho, also known as Bantera, was born in Luanda on July 10th 1967, in a family where culture and education play a central role. Although he usually uses the pseudonym Bantera (a contraction of the diminutive of Gilberto and Pantera), the artist prefers to sign his works with "Beto".

The artist first became aware of his creative potential on an island off the coast of Luanda. It was on the island of Mussulo, during his youth, that Bantera found a refuge, where he could strip away social conventions and explore his creative essence to the full. It is in Mussulo that the artist is born.

Besides painting, Bantera has a degree in Aeronautical Engineering. In turn, this multidisciplinary background is responsible for the empirical and interactive character that we observe, both in his artistic process and in his works.

Bantera's painting is the physical expression of his deepest emotions. The layers that we observe in Bantera's work correspond to an introspective exploration of his sorrows. This process of becoming aware of his pain only ends when the artist feels he has reached a state of inner peace, or in his words, "when he finds the light".

Each work is a window to the soul of the artist. Each work is a harmonious pain.

Bantera currently lives and works in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands.