Maria de Lourdes Ribeiro, known as Maluda, was born on 15 November 1934 in the city of Pangim, in what at the time was the Portuguese colony of Goa.
She started painting as a self-taught portraitist after she moved with her family to Lourenço Marques, now Maputo, in the former Portuguese colony of Mozambique, where she lived from 1948.
She was an all-round sports enthusiast, winning prizes in motor rallies, and taking part in horse riding, fencing, volleyball, basketball, and golf.
During her stay in Paris, she interacted with other artists, including Maria Helena Vieira da Silva and her husband, the Hungarian painter Árpád Szenes.
From 1985 onwards, Maluda was invited to make several series of stamps for CTT Correios de Portugal, S.A., the Portuguese post office.