Born and raised in Africa, the Angolan – Portuguese artist Julio Quaresma was educated in Portugal. Over his 29 year career as an artist, Julio Quaresma has participated in over 40 exhibitions both in Portugal and throughout the world. Most of his working life is spent in Lisbon, with brief periods, in China and Africa where he primarily focuses as an architect and portrait painter. Art and Architecture have been inseparable during various historical periods and they have decisively left their imprint on a large number of Julio’s paintings.
Since the beginning of the eighties Julio Quaresma has been exhibiting his works, where he strives to rediscovering art and reinvent the system of values linked to establishment. His work predominantly features clarity, logic, and order, and favors line over color. Although there may not always be material similarities between the different projects they are linked by both recurring formal themes and through the subject matter.
Working as an architect, sculptor, scenarist and painter, Quaresma owns a rigorous and varied portfolio. His artwork creates a social environment in which people come together to participate in a shared activity. Each painting combines canvas, wood, metal, oil, cloth with each having its own important role.
Never tiring of his experimentalism. His exhibition on canvas creates a place for his words to speak of the skill and feeling of the artist.
As a Sculptor, he uses a variety of materials including steel, glass and bronze to create shape-changing art forms.
He has almost exclusively worked with the human form, usually with minimal background. His images are primarily representational and include figures. During research and production new areas of interest always arise and lead to his next body of work, including those of portraits and still life paintings.
As a Figurative painter, Julio captures and illustrates the expressions and movements of the human body. Depicting human poise and anatomically correct proportions. Each painting combines canvas, wood, metal, oil and cloth.
Always taking his artwork in new directions Julio Quaresma is influenced by other artistic possibilities that he currently pursues with huge enthusiasm. These range from a sense of drama to a refined irony. With a continuously refined painting technique, his Still Life Paintings are unique. Utilizing mostly vegetables, the artist combines colorful and mostly fresh Portuguese vegetables with a variety of masks. These range from Oriental to Occidental culture and convey political and social meaning.
In his Portraits, he engages the viewer with a deeper insight. Face, Expression and Personality prevail rather than the superficial.
Cardozo Fine Arts Mgmt 