Sculpture news in Portugal

Latest news and stories about sculpture in Portugal for expats and residents.

Recent articles

Soares dos Reis: the greatness of a sculptor and the challenges of national artistic memory

The 180th anniversary of the birth of António Soares dos Reis, to be marked by the Soares dos Reis National Museum in Porto between 2027 and 2028, provides an opportunity to reflect on the preservation and study of Portuguese artistic heritage. A leading figure in 19th-century Portuguese sculpture, Soares dos Reis is best known for works like 'O Desterrado' (The Exile), which blend technical precision with profound psychological intensity. This upcoming commemorative programme, involving various academic and municipal institutions, serves as a call to move beyond mere celebration and instead invest in enduring research and public engagement with his legacy.

dn.pt29 Oct

Soares dos Reis: the greatness of a sculptor and the challenges of national artistic memory

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The upcoming 180th anniversary of the birth of António Soares dos Reis, a leading figure in 19th-century Portuguese sculpture, serves as an opportunity to reflect on the preservation and study of national artistic heritage. While works like 'O Desterrado' demonstrate his technical mastery and emotional depth, the commemorative programme planned for 2027-2028 by the Soares dos Reis National Museum and other institutions must go beyond celebration to foster new research and public engagement. Ultimately, honouring such an artist requires active institutional commitment to ensure his legacy is understood by future generations.

dn.pt28 Oct

Red clay from the Alentejo hides a secret in Viseu

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Molded from red clay from Vendas Novas, a heart disintegrates on the wall. The artist explores the symbolism of love and loss through abstract forms born from the action of time in the countryside.

observador.pt19 Oct

Red clay from the Alentejo hides a secret in Viseu

In Alberto Carneiro's studio, "the garden will change next spring"

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The art centre dedicated to the sculptor, in Santo Tirso, now has an extension at his workshop-studio in the parish where he was born, lived, and worked, São Mamede do Coronado, in Trofa.

publico.pt18 Oct

Theatricality, fluidity and ambiguity in Inês Zenha: there is mud at the Gulbenkian's Centre of Modern Art

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In Inês Zenha's “Murky Waters”, the metaphor of water animates sculpture like a liberating breath

expresso.pt15 Oct

Theatricality, fluidity and ambiguity in Inês Zenha: there is mud at the Gulbenkian's Centre of Modern Art

British artist Kathy Hinde creates multimedia sculpture in Leiria

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The audiovisual artist will develop a “kinetic sculpture” created “from the particular conditions” of the Lis river, in the village of Fontes. Public presentation starting November 1st.

observador.pt6 Oct

British artist Kathy Hinde creates multimedia sculpture in Leiria

Rewilding Portugal wants a sculpture inspired by the Greater Côa Valley in Vilar Maior

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The organization Rewilding Portugal is seeking a sculpture project that draws inspiration from the Greater Côa Valley to be installed in the village of Vilar Maior.

Jornal o Interior12 Sept

June Crespo's sculpture is seen, touched, and heard

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One of the most important young sculptors is having her first solo exhibition at the Kunsthalle Lissabon, in Lisbon.

publico.pt7 Aug

'Fragile&Solid'. A dialogue between a Belgian ceramicist and a Portuguese sculptor

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The exhibition 'Fragile&Solid' at the Camões Institute in Lisbon features a dialogue between the marble sculptures of Portuguese artist Jorge Pé-Curto and the porcelain bowls of Belgian ceramicist Mieke Everaet. Curated by Griet Meert, the show explores the contrast between the solidity of marble and the perceived fragility of porcelain, reflecting on human nature and the environment. The exhibition is open to the public with free admission until April 29.

Diário de Notícias14 Apr

'Fragile&Solid'. A dialogue between a Belgian ceramicist and a Portuguese sculptor

A sculpture that is a roof made by those who have no roof

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An architectural project that is also a work of art and vice versa. A studio and a sculptor come together to create a restaurant with the help of many hands from homeless people.

Público10 Apr

A sculpture that is a roof made by those who have no roof

Artist Marita Setas Ferro at the Venice Biennale

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With support from the Gulbenkian Foundation, the sculptor from Porto brings textile and recycled ceramics to Venice to reflect on ecology, memory, and environmental fragility.

Observador9 Apr

Artist Marita Setas Ferro at the Venice Biennale

"Through the stone": A journey into the creative process of sculptor Carlos Oliveira

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“Through the stone” is a documentary about sculptor Carlos Oliveira that has just been presented to the public in Caldas da Rainha, the artist's hometown. It showcases his work in the quarry, the “clay factory,” and the “Ninho da Paz” (Nest of Peace), the place where he lives, finds inspiration, and works.

RTP Notícias9 Apr

"Through the stone": A journey into the creative process of sculptor Carlos Oliveira

José Pedro Croft or geometry as a precarious balance

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A chapter that focuses essentially on the sculptural work of José Pedro Croft. A body of work that, although often using materials of great longevity, reflects solutions that always possess an internal fragility. It concludes that the intensity of his pieces results from the confrontation between the internal fragility of relationships and the tendency...

ECO12 Mar

José Pedro Croft or geometry as a precarious balance

Audio series "Howling at the Moon": Alberto Carneiro — sculpture as a celebration of the ephemeral

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Chapter II of the audio series “Howling at the Moon” is about Alberto Carneiro. He was born in 1937 in the municipality of Trofa. He had an artistic career spanning more than five decades and redefined sculpture in Portugal. He created non‑metaphorical environments made from reeds or sheaves of rye, with titles such as "A forest for the ...

ECO29 Jan

Audio series "Howling at the Moon": Alberto Carneiro — sculpture as a celebration of the ephemeral

Sculptor Francisco Simões has died, advocate of "democratic access to art"

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He was the creator of the work 'Women of Lisbon' and of the sculptures depicting figures of Portuguese poetry in the Jardim dos Poetas in Oeiras. He was 80 years old.

Público17 Jan

Sculptor Francisco Simões has died, advocate of "democratic access to art"

Sculptor Francisco Simões dies, champion of 'democratic access to art'

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He was the creator of the work “Mulheres de Lisboa” and the busts of Vieira da Silva and Arpad Szenes at Lisbon Metro stations. He was 80.

Correio da Manhã17 Jan

Sculptor Francisco Simões dies, champion of 'democratic access to art'

Sculptor Francisco Simões has died

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He was 80 years old.

CNN Portugal17 Jan

Sculptor Francisco Simões has died. 'He intertwined tradition and modernity in a harmonious way,' says Marcelo

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Portuguese sculptor Francisco Simões has died. Marcelo said the artist 'intertwined tradition and modernity in a harmonious way'.

Diário de Notícias16 Jan

Sculptor Francisco Simões has died. 'He intertwined tradition and modernity in a harmonious way,' says Marcelo

Fernanda Fragateiro: reading the landscape and writing architecture

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In Viseu, the artist sculpts distant views of different territories, suggested by tones, textures and vibrations.

Público16 Jan

Fernanda Fragateiro: reading the landscape and writing architecture

On Mother Nature — a sculpture by Xico Lucena

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Xico Lucena, a sculptor of the land, evokes Nature by carving a chestnut leaf to be admired on a hillside along the road to Sernancelhe.

Observador9 Jan

On Mother Nature — a sculpture by Xico Lucena

Portugal

1665: At the Battle of Ambuíla in northern Angola, a Portuguese force from Luanda under Luís Lopes de Sequeira defeats the army of the Kingdom of Kongo. King António I is killed and beheaded, and the once-powerful kingdom slides into civil war.
1936:The Tarrafal prison camp
The steamer Luanda lands the first 152 political prisoners at the Tarrafal concentration camp on Santiago island in Cape Verde, among them Marinha Grande strikers and sailors from the September mutiny. The 'camp of slow death' operated until 1954 and again from 1961 to 1974.
Read more Dictatorship and the Estado Novo, 1926–1974

Elsewhere

1929: 'Black Tuesday' on Wall Street: some 16 million shares change hands as the New York stock market collapses, the crash that ushered in the Great Depression.

What event prompted the composition of Portugal's national anthem, A Portuguesa?

Question 1 of 25 • 2 min quiz