As of early May, Casa do Design in Matosinhos will be showing ‘illustrated company’. The exhibition, which brings together 84 works by more than 40 artists, aims to explore and document the history of illustration in Portugal over the last few decades. The exhibition, presented for the first time on May 3rd at Casa do Design, is curated by lecturer and researcher José Saraiva and will remain open until the 30th of September.

Based on the technological, social, cultural and academic development of the last decades of the 20th century, Portuguese Illustration Archive: Contemporary Transformations and Trends seeks to explore and collect the history of illustration in Portugal, publicising the diversity of proposals and creators.

Organised by the Matosinhos City Council and esad-idea, Research in Design and Art, the exhibition is divided into four sections that vary between illustration techniques, authorial expression and the platforms and places where illustration emerges.

Among the most diverse artists represented in this collection are names such as: Madalena Matoso (Planeta Tangerina), André Letria, André Carrilho, Mariana, a miserável, António Jorge Gonçalves, João Vaz de Carvalho, Danuta Wojciehowska, Catarina Sobral, Joana Estrela, Mariana Rio, among many others.

The exhibition takes place as part of the Portuguese Contemporary Art Network (RPAC), and is part of the Portuguese Illustration Archive, a project which, in addition to the exhibition, also features a parallel programme, a publication and an online directory. Its main objectives are to broaden and reclaim cultural memory.

Designed to be itinerant, this project is the result of an application to the DGArtes by Casa do Design, in partnership with Centro de Arte Oliva, Centro de Artes de Águeda and Centro de Artes | Caldas da Rainha. This strategic partnership aims to play a fundamental role in promoting Portuguese illustration, contributing to greater knowledge about its history. The Portuguese Illustration Archive is constantly being built and is open to the inclusion of new works representing illustration in Portugal.