The landscape that represents me: Rui Algarvio representing himself in his work

Abstract

This reflection is based on the Artistic Residency entitled The landscape that represents me, within the scope of the international meeting Montanha Mágica/Arte e Paisagem. The challenge there was to explore the creative process to think and represent oneself through thinking and representation about the microlandscape of Jardim de Malufa in Covilhã. In this perspective, it was hoped that the interpretation of this Garden would result in the representation of oneself, the artist.The starting idea for this challenge was to interpret the identity of the garden’s place through the representation based on dialectics such as the following: imagination-perception; internal reality-external reality; memories-new knowledge. This approach envisaged an internal-external interrelationship through the dynamics of introspection/extrospection. In this sense, the relationship between the artist and the garden would involve a reflection based on his interior through the interpretation of the exteriority of the place, resorting to the expression of externalization of the whole phenomenon. This being based on the subjective-objective dialectic and symbiosis, resulted in representations of the artist’s identity – the human landscape – through the interpretation of the identity of the place/garden – the natural landscape.Rui Algarvio and myself participated with a creative project in this activity. In the case of the present theoretical reflection, this was based on our sharing of ideas during the visits to the artist’s studio and the gardens, in which I assumed the role of attentive listener to what Rui was reporting in relation to his creative process, what surprised him, what he found strange and what he admired.