Brazil is where Rutgers University-Newark artist Leonardo Silva Serra De Paula says he feels pure joy. Leaving behind everything he knew has been a struggle for him, so he thinks of home as he paints. The blue oil paint in his work takes him back to his childhood in Niterói, a coastal city that hugs the ocean near Rio de Janeiro. The feather-like strokes in sumi ink create circular forms that convey resilience and self-affirmation, and serve as a reminder of his past. “There is no place that I can feel at home 100 percent, like the way that I felt in Brazil,” the 27-year-old artist said.

De Paula’s work is featured with pieces from 75 other artists in Express Newark’s Pure Joy exhibit, which continues through Nov. 26 in the Hahne’s building, 625 Broad St. The artworks, selected from over

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