on wood / canvas
the wooden man
The Friends of Machico Library, headed by the Vatican's Minister for Education and Culture (Cardinal José Tolentino Mendonça), invited me to create a piece for the entrance to their library. Emanuel Gaspar was the curator and Miguel Angelo Rocha was also invited to create his own piece for that space.
In December 2022, my painting on canvas the wooden man (165 x 125cm) was premiered, along with my Sung Painting performance. The performance activated this image with sound and movement. The painting is related to a centuries-old local practice of warning neighbouring villages of the arrival of pirates by lighting large piles of wood on top of hills. Over time, this practice merged with a Catholic celebration held at the end of August. On a specific day (Santíssimo Sacramento), at dusk, large-scale handmade images of boats, fish and Catholic symbols are set alight on the large hills surrounding the town. Machico is historically a fishing area. Each burning design, made with balls of rags soaked in oil, is the work of a specific neighbourhood. One of those groups is in charge of lighting up with fire an old zigzag path that goes up on of the hills. In the end, they all come running down the slopes to the center of the bay to watch the valley surrounded by burning images and to have a swim in the ocean.
The Friends of Machico Library, headed by the Vatican's Minister for Education and Culture (Cardinal José Tolentino Mendonça), invited me to create a piece for the entrance to their library. Emanuel Gaspar was the curator and Miguel Angelo Rocha was also invited to create his own piece for that space.
In December 2022, my painting on canvas the wooden man (165 x 125cm) was premiered, along with my Sung Painting performance. The performance activated this image with sound and movement. The painting is related to a centuries-old local practice of warning neighbouring villages of the arrival of pirates by lighting large piles of wood on top of hills. Over time, this practice merged with a Catholic celebration held at the end of August. On a specific day (Santíssimo Sacramento), at dusk, large-scale handmade images of boats, fish and Catholic symbols are set alight on the large hills surrounding the town. Machico is historically a fishing area. Each burning design, made with balls of rags soaked in oil, is the work of a specific neighbourhood. One of those groups is in charge of lighting up with fire an old zigzag path that goes up on of the hills. In the end, they all come running down the slopes to the center of the bay to watch the valley surrounded by burning images and to have a swim in the ocean.
Palost in the right direction, oil on wood, 2022
old people were also afraid of being alone when they were children,
oil on altar corner fragment, 2022
broken temple, unbreakable spirit solo show, Monitor Rome Gallery, 2022
Ladies and Gentlemen, we are floating in space, oil on early 20th Century altar fragment, 2022
where we all come from, oil on 18th Century altar fragment, 28 x 20 x 23 cm, 2022
centrifugal love/centripetal love, oil on wood, 110x90 cm, 2021
meditation: wood woman
oil on 17th Century wood panel. The panel was replaced when a Madeiran chapel dedicated to Our Lady of the Angels was repaired. The Vanda barnesii orchid was cultivated by Pedro Spínola, a producer with hundreds of orchid varieties growing on his grandmother's terrace in Madeira. The female figure, as all in the pencil sketch, comes from the Lapinha do Caseiro. It is a hand carved wood nativity scene from the late 19th century, created by poet Herberto Helder's illiterate grand-grandfather. 130 x 180 cm, 2019
oil on 17th Century wood panel. The panel was replaced when a Madeiran chapel dedicated to Our Lady of the Angels was repaired. The Vanda barnesii orchid was cultivated by Pedro Spínola, a producer with hundreds of orchid varieties growing on his grandmother's terrace in Madeira. The female figure, as all in the pencil sketch, comes from the Lapinha do Caseiro. It is a hand carved wood nativity scene from the late 19th century, created by poet Herberto Helder's illiterate grand-grandfather. 130 x 180 cm, 2019
the initial sketch
waiting for ourselves, oil on 100 year old wooden bed headboard, 140x137, 2020
editar.
editar.
the models: the surviving apostles from Lapinha do Caseiro
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restored temple, oil on wooden closet, 105x56x30 cm, 2020
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ui para editar.
ui para editar.
sete estrelo solo show, Monitor Lisbon, 2020
now with no tricks, oil on checkers board, 29x38x8 cm, 2020
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para editar.
golden root II, oil on wood, 130x90 cm, 2020
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ra editar.
ra editar.
gut light, acrylic on wood and mixed media, 2019
done live during Anozero'19 Bienal of Contemporary Art - Coimbra.
done live during Anozero'19 Bienal of Contemporary Art - Coimbra.
Constructed in the city where I was born, this shelving-altar presents the mains axes of a personal cosmogony: foundational presences below, protective presences above, female archetypes to the left and male ones to the right. At the center, a paintings showing old amateur puppeteers playing in their basement, an image that connects all these axes. Older paintings, painted and unpainted wooden shapes and fire wood are shelved amidst the several wooden panels created specifically for this installation.
photos: Jorge das Neves/CAPC, Bruno Lopes, Giorgio Benni, Catarina Pestana, Ricardo Félix/C.M.MAchico, Daniel V. Melim.