"Coração em Contramão" is a celebration of the human heart with all its complexities, and also, it’s vulnerabilities..."

 

"Coração em Contramão" is an exhibition of the work of Liliana Velho, who presents a collection of handmade hearts, made in earthenware, clay, and porcelain.

Each heart is a unique representation, charged with symbolism and meaning, presenting different textures and colours. As written by the poet Luís Miguel Nava “The heart is like a city that has a mirror as the suburbs and the sea that fades into memory, where the heart is found”.

The pieces in this exhibition explore the heart as a muscle and a metaphor for love and Unlove. Some hearts are sculped as buildings or houses, as if emotion and life were pulsing inside them. Back to Nava “now that someone made refineries out of our hearts, the smoke irrupts, we would say filled with the chimneys emotions”.

   "Coração em Contramão" is a celebration of the human heart with all its complexities, and also, it’s vulnerabilities and scars where you can find the poetry in the heart of every piece.

What led you to work as a sculptor?

I have been sculpting since an early age, in primary school I used to make a lot of collage work, at that time I didn’t realize but what I enjoyed the most were the 3d elements I would incorporate in those collages. When I entered college, it became clear that sculpture was my area and from there I started to work mostly with paper paste and clay.

How did you come up with the idea for “Coração em Contramão”?

It started with a hearth brake. The first pieces were almost a sort of therapy, but after some time the heartbreak was cured and the hearts started to gain new, mutated and renewed shapes. They are now an ongoing project, every year there is a new series of pieces, inspired by love and its accidents.

What is the most defining element of your work?

Over the last years I have been working mostly with ceramics, choosing clay as the main material in my artistic practice. I like to work with different scales, and explore the variations within these spaces.

What inspires you?

One can find inspiration in so many things! For me is mostly in nature and its textures, as well as in the endless conversations about art with some of my closest friends. In this exhibition, many of the hearts are invaded by flowers, leaves and little pieces of moss that remind me of the country and my childhood. The pieces are built and installed with the wish that they will transport the audience to quiet inspiring places filled with good memories.

FICHA TÉCNICA

Title| Coração em Contramão

Technique| Cerami sculpture

Author| Liliana Velho

Text| Luiz Antunes

Curation| Luiz Antunes

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I.

Turn on the power saw and lean over it.
Open your chest causing as much damage as possible.

II.

Remove the heart and leave the offal.
Make cuts and massage with coarse salt.
Let it stand on the heat for fifteen minutes.

III.

Eat your heart.
You have to eat and cry at the same time for it to take effect.

IV.

Now you can sleep, rest, cuddle.
You should also lick your wounds.
Warning! Another heart will grow soon in the same place.