Her very first solo exhibition last May was extended due to popular demand, and since then, Carla Soares’ art has gone into overdrive.
In a few whirlwind months she has taken part in a variety of collective exhibitions (including Arte Algarve’s Open V11), been approached by galleries in Lisbon and is now working hard on new paintings for shows in Barcelona and Cascais.
It was the power of Carla’s series entitled “Vidas” that seems to have impelled this upward trajectory.
BurnFull of arresting almost hyper-realistic portraits, the series was designed to highlight social tragedies playing out in plain sight, both here in Portugal and to a certain extent anywhere else in the world.
“I wanted to show something that we are all aware of in society (that there are outcasts) but which a lot of the time we pretend we don’t see. It is much easier, after all, to pretend ignorance than to try and resolve problems within society”.
Hearteningly though, people warmed to the subject – many returning to the exhibition at prestigious gallery “Casa Brasil”, in her hometown of Santarém, time and time again.
“In fact, the organisers told me they hadn’t had so many visitors to an exhibition for a very long time”, Carla tells us.
“It made me very happy, as it meant that although the images “shocked” to a certain extent, people were not offended.
“I didn’t sell any of the paintings”, she adds. “But that wasn’t my main objective. My desire really was to become known and show that one can produce art of great quality which at the same time carries a strong social message”.
It’s a far cry from selling insurance, which is what Carla, 48, used to do before dedicating herself 100% to art and attending a four year Arts and Multimedia course.
During the course, she was also able to develop her love of sculpture, and collaborated with her teacher, sculptor Jean Campiche, on a bust of the legendary Aristides Sousa Mendes (the Portuguese diplomat who saved so many jews during the 2nd World war by issuing them with free travel visas). The bust is now on permanent show at the Escola Básica 2/3 Aristides de Sousa Mendes, in Vila Franca de Xira.
Currently working on a new theme “the aggression heaped on women – emotional/ physical”, Carla is forever assailed by new ideas and admits there are not enough hours in the day.
“I am a very emotive person. Everything registers with me – even the winter where there was so much rain! But I think that it is thanks to this temperament that I can transmit emotion to the canvas. And that’s the feeling I want to transmit! I like “strong” things. I think everyone can see this in my work”.
Some of the artist’s comments on her “Vidas” series:
“It all began with a man who suffered from alcoholism… it was his story that opened my heart to approaching social exclusion as a subject for the canvas. It was a long, arduous task, but very interesting. I met spectacular people, some of them very old (90 years).
“One of the the biggest problems of these people is the lack of care by family members, as well as by people in general. They feel isolated, alone. In fact, they are very alone, and desperately need someone to give them some care, attention… even just a few friendly words can brighten their days.”
