Selected
Abel Manta Painting Prize 2019
by Alexandre Coxo, 18 May 2019
In this year's 2019 edition of the Abel Manta Painting Prize, I had the honour of once again being part of the exhibition at the Gouveia Municipal Museum.
The Museum's management chose a new exhibition format, selecting only 8 artists and their works for the exhibition.
This new format is more demanding, both in the selection and in preparing the exhibition itself, which makes me particularly proud to have been selected.
The image shows the painting that received the distinction. Its title is "Tiro - Um Homem Que Consegue Mudar 7 ou Uma breve Reflexão Sobre as Alterações Climáticas ou Um Por do Sol" (A Man Who Can Change 7, or A Brief Reflection on Climate Change, or A Sunset); it is an oil painting on linen, 120cm x 120cm x 4cm.
This painting belongs to the series "Tiro - Um Homem Que Consegue Mudar", which I have been developing over the past year and which I accompany with the poem that gives the series its name, written by my friend Daniel Sousa:
"A Man who can change
Alone with his art
To make of it
The solitude of those who see it
Passed on through the knowledge
Of one who can choose
His cause,
Enigmatic,
With sweet prejudices
It shapes vision and the world
It shapes the solitude of those who see
Makes them free and profound
Makes them a Man
A Man who sees everything."
The selected painting differs from the rest of the series in one respect. It was developed in response to the competition's context and its current theme, Climate Change. In this case I chose a seaside sunset, adding to the image the meaning of something that ends but can be reborn in our hands. I reinforced this ambiguity with a longer title: "Tiro - Um Homem Que Consegue Mudar 7 ou Uma breve Reflexão Sobre as Alterações Climáticas ou Um Por do Sol".
You can see other paintings in this series on the site's Home page. Just click here.
I naturally congratulate the winner, Fátima Teles.
In the image link alongside you will find more information about the Prize.
