The Covid-19 pandemic has inspired many artists in the Brazilian capital of "street art".

The megalopolis of 12 million inhabitants, shut down for many months due to the coronavirus pandemic, has regained its colors and the artists have not failed to draw inspiration from this totally unprecedented event.

The fresco of the Hospital of Clinics, the largest in Latin America, "units science and faith to show that there is no contradiction between them in the face of a negationist movement", antiscientist, explains to the AFP its author, Eduardo Kobra.

"It is very important at this time to bring a message of faith and hope so that people can understand that they are not alone, this is the role of art", considers the artist of 47 years, a recognized figure in the "open-air museum" that Sao Paulo has represented since the 1990s.

“For us who fight the pandemic every day, the tribute is moving,” says Tadeu Costa, a 35-year-old doctor from the Hospital of Clinics.

Eduardo Kobra has also produced works for the Butantan Institute, in Sao Paulo, and the Oswaldo Fiocruz Foundation, in Rio de Janeiro, which produce anti-covid vaccines in Brazil where the pandemic has killed more than 640,000 people, the highest toll in the world. world in absolute figures behind the United States.

The mural "Graffiti for heroes" by artist Priscilla Barbosa in Sao Paulo, on February 15, 2022 in Brazil NELSON ALMEIDA AFP

Priscila Barbosa portrayed a masked nurse with flowers in her hand.

This is a reference to a solidarity campaign, which started in 2020 from the United States and entitled "Flowers for heroes", aimed at hospital staff and essential workers.

"At that time we knew little about the Covid, she has a halo of light, like someone capable of bringing relief", explains the artist who, working on revolutionary women in Latin America, found a new source of inspiration in female health professionals.

Waldir Grisolia, meanwhile, painted a fresco dedicated to a nurse holding white roses symbolizing peace.

A mural by artist Waldir Grisolia on one of the walls of the Hospital of Clinics, on February 15, 2022 in Sao Paulo, Brazil NELSON ALMEIDA AFP

"I thought it was important to make my contribution and, as I am not a doctor, I did it with my art in this mural: it was very rewarding".

© 2022 AFP