Robinho Santana

By LatAm ARTE

Robinho Santana is a Brazilian visual artist, researcher, and experimental musician, born and raised in Diadema, São Paulo. He holds academic training in Design and Photography. His art is deeply engaged with the experience of his community, especially focusing on narratives about Black peripheral life and giving visibility and dignity to Black men and women in Brazil. In painting, murals, and public art, he portrays everyday figures—mothers, children, people from outside the cultural centers—as protagonists. One of his most significant works is Deus é mãe , a large-scale mural covering 1,892 m² in Belo Horizonte, which is the largest urban wall art (empena) in Brazil. He also works with murals such as Algo sobre nós , and in street art, graffiti, and public art festivals. Robinho uses vibrant colors and figurative imagery, often merging streets, architecture, and personal memory with themes such as motherhood, identity, resistance, and social justice. He sees art as a tool for representation and change, not only as decoration. Santana also participates in educational work and projects that bring art into community life, helping young people to see themselves and their stories represented in visual art.