Álvaro Lapa

Álvaro Lapa was born in Évora in 1939. He obtained a degree in Philosophy from the Faculty of Arts at the University of Lisbon. His adolescence was marked by his contact with the painter António Charrua and the writer Virgílio Ferreira in Évora, which sparked his interest in art and literature. In 1956, he moved to Lisbon, where he enrolled in Law and later in Philosophy, completing his degree in 1975. In 1961, he traveled to Paris, where he had contact with surrealist painters and American artistic movements. Upon his return, he began painting, encouraged by António Areal, creating works with a strong abstract and informal inclination. He had his first solo exhibition in 1964 and the following year he moved to Lagos. During this period, he explored the use of “non-noble” materials and began structuring his work into narrative series, incorporating a limited set of symbols and forms, as well as written words as elements of plastic composition. In 1976, he became a professor of theoretical courses at the Porto School of Fine Arts and settled in the city. In the 1980s, he became acquainted with José-Augusto França, who guided him in his doctoral thesis on Surrealism in Portugal. Alongside his artistic production, Lapa continuously dedicated himself to writing, authoring numerous publications. He was awarded several prizes, including the 3rd Prize at the I Lagos Art Salon (1970), the AICA Prize (1987), and the EDP Grand Prize (2004). He passed away on February 11, 2006, in Porto. Source: National Museum of Contemporary Art – Chiado