Álvaro Lapa

Portuguese painter/writer (1939-2006), he was one of the great names of the Portuguese Contemporary Art. His work is characterised by an aesthetical coherence and by the impossibility of being inscribed in genres. Some authors defend that his work has an autobiographical nature, and it might not fit into any ism. His work throughout times demonstrated a strong relationship between literature and painting. His degree on Philosophy might partly justify this connection.

Throughout years Álvaro Lapa, who held his first exhibition on Manuel de Brito’s Galeria 111, in Lisbon, maintained constant activity, holding numerous exhibitions in and outside Portugal, stating himself as one of the most important painters of the second half of the 20th century.

With writing difficult to understand, Álvaro Lapa published several titles. Always allying painting to sculpture, his work is a singular case of freedom, experience and rupture on the quest for a profoundly poetic sense.
In 1976, he joined the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Porto as a teacher, where he lectured mainly theoretical subjects.