Portuguese graphic designer and illustrator Diogo Machado, also known as Add Fuel finished recently in Lisbon this new mural titled ‘Comvida’ in the old area of Bairro Padre Cruz, according to the artist, one of the most Portuguese places I’ve had the pleasure to experience.
In this new mural Add Fuel once again reinterprets and inserts the traditional Portuguese azulejo in his work, introducing the so-called ‘figuras de convite’ or introduction figures; life-sized cut-out tile image (footmen, noblemen or elegantly dressed ladies) made of azulejos, tiles, usually placed in entrances of palaces. This figures were widely used in the 18th and 19th centuries and their purpose was to welcome visitors. They can only be found in Portugal.
The choice of the Portuguese tile as his main subject has to do, not only with a desire to identify himself as Portuguese, but also to reflect about the significance of tradition, what it means for us and how we can preserve it in a fast paced and technologically advanced modern world.
The mural was curated by Mistaker Maker and promoted by GAU.
Photos by Rui Gaiola (@ruigaiola)
Author: Fran
Founder and editor of Urbanite. Street Art lover who after the finishing her MA thesis on the Mexican and Norwegian muralist movement in the 1920-50s, developed a fascination for street art and graffiti that eventually led to collaborations with different art blogs, including the creation of this one.
