Tag: Colour

Hip-Hop on the Edge

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From the text published in the website of Almada City Council

https://www.cm-almada.pt/museus/filhos-do-meio-hip-hop-a-margem

«Filhos do Meio – Hip Hop à Margem» is the new temporary exhibition at the Almada Museum – Casa da Cidade, scheduled to open on October 26th at 3:00 pm, and which will occupy the two floors of the temporary exhibition wing of Casa da Cidade until the end of March 2025.

The exhibition is part of the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the 25th of April 1974 and also marks the 30th anniversary of the RAPublica collection, the first compilation of Portuguese rap, released in 1994. It aims to provide an interpretation of the identity of Almada, integrating the cultural movements fostered by the 1974 Revolution, stimulated by the arrival of new populations and their reproduction in the municipality of Almada, highlighting the contribution of the hip hop culture that was founded there and giving expression to geographical and cultural areas of the municipality that are less known to the general public. The guiding theme focuses on the post-25th of April because it is in these youthful dynamics fostered by the younger generations that the creative processes have been constructed over these 50 years, in a permanent exchange with similar territorial realities in spaces that cross Almada and the Costa da Caparica with the municipalities of the Setúbal peninsula and the Lisbon Metropolitan Area.

The exhibition includes sections dedicated to the history of hip hop in Portugal and Almada, with links to fashion, breakdancing and pirate radio stations; highlighting expressions such as graffiti and rap in Portuguese, associating them with television media coverage and ending with the current creative situation, framed in an independent record market, streaming and social networks. This exhibition of colour, light and sound presents hip hop as an integral part of youth expression, rooted in the outskirts of the city of Lisbon, inserting it into the national music scene, but, above all, highlighting its uniqueness from Almada, the most local thing that these “middle children” have brought to the national music scene since then.

At the same time, Casa da Cidade will host a complementary programme, one Saturday a month, where music, dance and graffiti  will be the main starting points for conversations and workshops dedicated to the central theme of this exhibition….”

I visited the opening session yesterday, some snapshots below

Live model drawings… and fast cars

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Yesterday my Drawing Club had a live model drawing session at “Tim’s Garage” where some wealthy car collectors store their toys.  Very well- kept cars, classical models, some rarities.  Motorbikes and scooters also.  I was allowed to take some snapshots of the cars before this very unnusual drawing session:  great contrast between the still model  and the some very fast cars.

Sketches first

And now the snapshots of some cars

AC Cobra

Ford Mustang

And other cars and motorbikes

Contrasto

Posted on Posted in City, Imagination, MusicTagged , , , , , , , 2 Comments

“Contrasto” is an anual event in my neighbourhood.  

It is promoted by an active group of neighbours, and promotes socializing through music (plenty of music) , small workshops, activities for children, art exhibitions, a market of home-made artisanal products, eating, drinking and dancing until 10pm.

There is an active participation of all the neighbours.

This year I had the idea of a “Get wings ! ” project.

 I made two pairs of wings and hanged them. People could be photographed in front of those wings – instant photos were taken with a “mini-Instax camera” and the subjects collected them by the end of the day. Different results, this camera is quite tricky and very sensitive to light variations, but the idea was appreciated and the participation exceeded my expectations.

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“Boxing Clash #2”, an amateur boxing match between Portuguese and Italian teams in a Gym near Lisbon, Lots of enthusiasm, some agressivity and violence to an acceptable level (no serious injuries, no bleedings). Not being a fan or an expert, it was an interesting experience to me. I was surprised by the high number of women watching the match – and by their vocal incentives to the fighters.

The days are numbered

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An  exhibition of photographs by Daniel Blaufuks at the Museum of Architecture Art and Technology (MAAT) in Lisbon. I selected two of many photos exposed. A few hundreds of small instax photos, isolated or paired, with hand-written, printed or glued captions.

From the introductory text by João Pinharanda :

“We created time and immediately felt hemmed in and devoured by it. Memory is a betrayal of time. We have always tried, without success, to escape it, to negate its erosive influence – a Sisyphean task in which Blaufuks, who exposes to the world the weight of the myriad epochs and memories (family, personal, historical, political, cultural, …) he carries, participates.

Some more information here https://maat.pt/en/event/daniel-blaufuks-days-are-numbered

Two new paintings

Posted on Posted in Imagination, Sketches, drawings, paintingsTagged , , , , , , 6 Comments

I have just finished two oil paintings. Two examples of too much imagination  – deserving a much better painting technique…

”The Acrobats” (oil on canvas) with three ascending figures coming from nowhere and pushing themselves upwards.

 And “Thaurokathapsia” (oil on plywood), a modern imaginary version of a lost Minoic art.

The Acrobats

Taurokathapsia

Time portals

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An exhibition commemorating the 50th anniversary of the April Revolution and the end of the colonial wars in Africa. Seven artists created images on very large semi-transparent canvases, installed in the abandoned buildings of the largest ship repair industry in the Lisbon area.

There is visible light from the roof windows coming in through the canvases.

Things as they are

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From “The Man with the Blue Guitar” by Wallace Stevens (1879-1955), a fragment from part XIV.

“…A candle is enough to light the world,

It makes it clear. Even at noon

It glistens in essential dark.

At night, it lights the fruit and wine,

The book and bread, things as they are.”

For those interested, the complete Wallace Stevens poem inspired, in the seventies, the series of etchings “The Blue Guitar” by David Hockney – well worth to be seen.

Salt

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Reviewing some old negatives from more than 15 years ago, I found some images from the salt pans of the Tagus South bank.  They seemed abandoned then, probably they are now out of business. But old tools and machines were still there, and also the big salt mounts – as if the people working there had suddenly gone away. Some boats were on the river – and seagulls too, of course…

The new Book is out !!!

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My long-time friend João Spratley is an excellent writer. He wrote a series of short texts in the form of traditional Fables, and asked me to illustrate them. This resulted in a short book, in French, that was published in 2021 (“Le Sourire du Chat et autres historiettes”). In the same line, we have just published a second (and last) book of Fables, also written in French (“Le Dernier sourire du Chat”), and also illustrated by me. I created a page Books im my main menu joaoavelarnet.org/books/ where you can find more details

Pastoral

Posted on Posted in PoetryTagged , , , , , , , 4 Comments

Reviewing my old photos, I found one that matches a well-known poem by William Carlos Williams

Pastoral

by William Carlos Williams

When I was younger
it was plain to me
I must make something of myself.
Older now
I walk back streets
admiring the houses
of the very poor:
roof out of line with sides
the yards cluttered
with old chicken wire, ashes,
furniture gone wrong;
the fences and outhouses
built of barrel staves
and parts of boxes, all,
if I am fortunate,
smeared a bluish green
that properly weathered
pleases me best of all colors.
No one
will believe this
of vast import to the nation.

from The Collected Poems of W.C. Williams, New Directions