Àlvaro Siza. Viagem sem Programa
On Tuesday 1 May, the studio Aires Mateus opens its doors for the exhibition titled Álvaro Siza. Viagem sem Programa, curated by Greta Ruffino and Raul Betti. The project, which was a collateral event at the 13th International architecture exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia, will be put on view in Portugal for the whole month of May. On display at Aires Mateus Atelier from 2 through 31 May.
The exhibition has the institutional support of Medicina Mentis Cultural Association, exclusive sponsorship by Robbialac and the promotional support of Lacrau (Douro D.O.C.) wines.
“We are please that today the journey continues in Portugal.” – explain Greta Ruffino and Raul Betti.
Aires Mateus studio will become the venue for the collection composed of 53 drawings, made over a period of 60 years and personally selected by the author.
The collection was compiled with the purpose of creating a unique work, first of all, via digital restoration aimed at retrieving the traits and marks of each drawing then transferring them on paper via single-use template silkscreen print type (fifty-three 1/1 prints authenticated by the author), revealing the progress in terms of technique and sensitivity in observing reality.
The exhibition also features a video documentary, a first-person narration where the Portuguese architect reveals his passion for drawing, which becomes a constant means for research, communication and assessment of his professional and personal life over time.
It will also include over 150 photos, forming a narrative of the project from its genesis to the present, proposing a journey through images that helps one comprehend the complexity of the work behind this project.
Manuel Aires Mateus precisely sums up the importance of Siza's drawings, the richness of his representations and his ability to perceive and understand, turning every glance into the transmission of knowledge:
“Álvaro Siza’s drawings have a revealing power. They explain the ‘world’ in a masterful manner mediated through his reasoning, his sensibility, his wisdom”.
