Though the world is still dealing with travel restrictions and stilted circles, Portuguese visual artist Diogo Machado, known from walls internationally as Add Fuel, is still crafting breathtaking facades. The artist recently completed two domestic walls, one in Lisbon, and the other in Caldas da Raigna, two cities close to Cascais, where the artist lives and works.
In Lisbon, Add Fuel created a new mural titled ‘Amplexo,’ the Portuguese word for embrace. A press release for the project states that it was “produced in collaboration with RUGO Factory to celebrate Casa Pia Lisboa’s 240th anniversary. “Can a wall be a hug?” the press release asks. “The piece created for Casa Pia de Lisboa is exactly that.” Wikipedia states that the Casa Pia is a Portuguese institution created in 1780 and “dedicated to helping youngsters in risk of social exclusion or without parental support.” It was created in response to the chaos that followed the 1775 earthquake which still ranks one of the deadliest in history. The instiution’s website states that Casa Pia is “a place of new beginnings, in which all children have equal opportunities for a promising future.”
The press release continues to explain, “this wall has the metaphorical shape of a hug, with arms that create space within. Its unfinished look is the artistic interpretation of the institution’s never ending work caring for children and young people for 240 years. The drawings represent the interests of the young students as well as the mission and values of the institution.”
Add Fuel’s biography recounts that the artist began painting with his signature style in 2008, evolving from his existing works “populated by a cast of slimy, eccentric and joyful creatures,” into his current focus “towards working with and reinterpreting the language of traditional tile design, and that of the Portuguese tin-glazed ceramic azulejo in particular.” ‘Amplexo’ harnesses Add Fuel’s entertaining visual language to create the dynamic sensation of a hug with comforting efficacy. Each pattern present in this gorgeous piece stuns with its lively depth and complexity. As the press release states, “an ‘amplexo’ is the easiest way of showing affection, this work is the artist’s way of embracing the cause and the children in this institution.”
The artist also created another mural titled ‘Caldense’ for FALU Festival in Caldas da Rainha, a city renowned for its pottery. “For a tiles and ceramics’ art lover, creating a mural in the city of Caldas da Rainha is both an honor and a tribute,” its press release states. Raphael Bordallo Pinheiro is the predominant figure within the city’s heritage of craftsmanship. The website for his still-extant enterprise writes that “In 1884 Bordallo began his ceramics production at the Fábrica de Faianças in Caldas, revealing pieces of great technical, artistic and creative quality,” which went on to enjoy artistic acclaim and prolific distribution.
The press release for ‘Caldense’ says that its artist was “Inspired by the enormous Bordallo Pinheiro, the richness of natural elements represented in his collections and the genius shapes of his objects.” In honoring this history, Add Fuel “reinterprets the legacy of traditional Caldas ceramics to offer the inhabitants of the city his own tribute.”
‘Caldense’ means to be of Caldas. Add Fuel’s work pushes itself in an effort to woo the city and “to be as Caldense as each one of its inhabitants.”. Rendered entirely in hues of blue, ‘Caldense’ stops time and steals breaths. It marries Add Fuel’s mastery over pattern with his former character work, pitting the two against each other in a matchup that resolves beautifully. The gradient color scheme that swirls throughout this work makes it move with bliss, with grace. This mural embodies what the artist’s bio calls “ a poetic rhythm that plays with the viewer’s perception and the (multiple) possibilities of interpretation.” It is a fitting tribute to this significant place, “From the blue of secular tiles to the green of Bordallo cabbages, from the shape of artichokes to the one of decorative pots, from the realistic fauna and flora to the artist’s imaginary creatures.”
Add Fuel’s work proves that aesthetic pleasure and intellectual depth are closely linked, to the point of inseparability. Both pieces elevate their subjects, celebrating the gorgeous country Add Fuel originally hails from. ‘Amplexo’ builds upon his recent work, and ‘Caldense’ takes it to new heights. Both murals show how profound it is to lean into life’s beauty amidst uncertainty.
