Inspiring nature
The day after the visit to Samambaia I received it in a state of stupor, mixed with an unexpected peace and joy. Even if I had not discovered the whole secret, I had found a fragment of my grandmother, and as small as it was, I carried a new part of her inside me. It had been a real reunion. And that was enough.
My remaining days in Petrópolis would be spent exploring the city. I wanted to see the surroundings and meet the people, trying to recreate in images and experiences that Petrópolis so emblematic of the 50's. My first stop was the Palácio Quitandinha.
Built in the 1940s, this hotel became the second largest in Brazil. Its Brazilian baroque style blends with art deco decor, with a result that is still impressive today. As I walk through the wide corridors, I can't help but think again of Lota and Elizabeth, and the parties they must have attended here. Would they have met some of the celebrities who stayed in this architectural paradise? Would they have exchanged glances, or words, with Walt Disney, Orson Welles or Greta Garbo?
The environments, once full of bustle and exuberance, are now uncluttered, with velvet barriers limiting the passage of passersby. Preservation has defeated recreation, and taken some of the magic with it. I walk slowly, absorbing every detail and wishing my grandmother was with me to bring back with her words the touches of splendor that were now missing from the place.
It is going down some stairs that I stop, enraptured.
One of the most inexhaustible sources of inspiration for artists has always been nature. There are endless ways to transform, combine and unfold it. In that staircase, painted palm leaves decorated the wall. I run my hand along the contours, not daring to make any contact with the drawing, for fear of damaging it. I let the art cover me and smile, happy and inspired.
- Do you like drawing?
Downstairs, a staff member looks at me, amused.
- Do you know who did it?
- Well, Dorothy Draper, of course. It's a variation of her design from the Arrowhead Springs Hotel in California.
I froze in the corner. Dorothy Draper, the queen of the eclectic, the first interior designer in history... her famous palms are still praised today, almost eighty years later. For her, public spaces were places where people should feel elevated in the presence of great beauty. And here, with me, she had succeeded.
What is it about Petrópolis that attracts such strong and talented women? Is it its vibrant nature, its breathtaking views or its history, which, like a magnet, makes artists come in droves and leave their art impregnated on the walls?
Dorothy Draper's unexpected appearance in this story gives me an idea. I pick up my notebook and begin to write, until those letters become smooth strokes. There was Draper, yes, but there would also be Lota and Elizabeth, with their Samambaia and their macaws.
This is how the Petrópolis mural was born.
