PORTO.-The Museu Serralves opened the exhibit Alvess through April 20. Manuel Alvess is perhaps Portugal's most secret artist. Living in Paris since the 1960s, Alvess was welcomed and admired by other Portuguese artists living in the city, such as Lourdes Castro or René Bertholo. His first works were based on empty stretched canvases where the drawing appears through the use of zippers or opening of holes in the fabric. He produced performances, mail art projects and invents a series of objects of non-functional sizes, such as his elastic and flexible “seizimètre”. His work is always critical of legitimate forms of presentation of art objects, redefining their nature and provoking art through reference to day-to-day life. This exhibition will be the first anthological presentation of his work.

Manuel Alvess has lived in Paris since the 60’s and has taken part in important artistic events such as “La Bienal” in Paris in 1969 and the “Salon de Mai” in 1971. Alvess’ work questions the material nature of art, the way it can be expressed and its symbolic social status. His early works consist of blank stretched canvasses pinpointed with needles, creating holes that expose a picture beneath. His work is always critical of the established methods of artistic expression, redefining the nature of art and seeking it in daily life. This exposition is the first anthological presentation of the artist’s work.