do vestígio ao enigma

Tese de mestrado, Pintura, Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Belas Artes, 2011This theoretical and practical project addresses the Shadow as a theme, being mainly focused on its representation in contemporary art. The choice of the theme derives essentially from the plastic characteristics of my work, but also from the curiosity that the Shadow has raised on me since the beginning of my training in Painting, due to the fact of its close and intimate proximity not only to the origins of Art, Painting in particular, but also to its entire history. The contents herein presented endeavor to clarify the concepts of Shadow as a trace and of Shadow as an enigma, with considerations on issues directly related to such concepts, which I consider most relevant for both the matrix concept (Shadow) and the concepts of trace and enigma. This dissertation is divided into three chapters. On Chapter I, I reflect on the physical and other meanings closely related to art and briefly introduce the development of the concept of Shadow and its representation in Western art, as from its origins to the present day, in order to contextualize the theme and to assess on which main factors have contributed to the great variability of types used to assess, either in the past or in the present, the concept of Shadow. On Chapter II, I enunciate some ways of expression as well as some modern and contemporary artists, who are my references and with whom I share several plastic features. Finally, on Chapter III, I present my art project, aiming to elucidate the reader not only about the reasons that led me to embark on the theme of Shadow, as on the thread that led to the development of its existing plastic and conceptual features, including the concrete influences which I have been suffered along the way (through my references) as well as the search for an open artistic discourse, in constant evolutio