Here is a perfect glimpse of some of the fundamentals of Elaine Ruas’s personality : independence of judgment, assertion of one's own taste and of one's own choices in defiance of consensus, frankness, refusal of compromise, passion, endurance and loyalty.
Of all these qualities that Elaine showed right from the very beginning of our relationship, not one was denied during our almost three years of collaboration, punctuated by the various pitfalls that stood in our way and by the disillusions that adversity sometimes inflicted us. Three years of friendship that have turned into fourteen years - so far until 2022-, during which every time that I think of Elaine Ruas, I see again her tender blue and pensive eyes with a genuine and fragile look at the same time ; the eyes of a sincere woman who loves people and generously gives them a lot (and most probably receives little in return sometimes). A sensitive woman, deeply and magnificently human, whom I love and will love all of my life. And to whom I owe everything of my Brazilian artistic adventure. Do I need to say more? Yes, perhaps a little telling about our common adventure -and some yummy memories.

Of course, I will not attempt to list here the mountains that Elaine was obliged to move, like Sisyphus relentlessly climbing up the slope and falling down -but never giving up. A thousand times our common endeavours got lost and diluted, but when they finally succeeded, it was an apotheosis to me.

For three years, Elaine turned every stone and even more for her contacts to bear fruit, and despite the hazards, persevered. Only she and I alone can measure the extraordinary work she performed then. Only she and I can remember our moments of discouragement, and sometimes of disbelief when we must face the flippancy and the lack of discernment and courage that some of our interlocutors showed throughout the fights that she must lead in Brasilia, and mine on my own side in Paris. And the darkness as well that sometimes engulfed our actions.