As a child, she had the freedom to explore the arts, between colored pencils and her mother's watercolors. This was one of the incentives to become an artist. But that wasn't all. Her capacity for introspection, which led to many hours spent alone, drawing, led Joana Galego to find refuge in art, and a way of processing (and relating to) the world.
Joana Galego wanted to be an astronaut, an archaeologist, a dentist and even a pastor. She grew up surrounded by books filled with pictures, whether they were her mother's art history books, since she was an art teacher, or her own, that lived on the bookshelves in her bedroom and were filled with wonderful illustrations. She was born in Cascais in 1994 and although not knowing from the outset that her future would lie in the arts, it was in this world that she found shelter and a way to express herself. Joana tells us that she has always wanted to "create something that touches the other, that communicates, that arouses a visceral reaction" and that, at the same time, she would like her images to bring comfort, to be "like a good listener or even a friend." She's a genuine artist with an obvious passion for what she does, for those around her and for the artistic world in which she lives - so much so that this passion transcends the emails that separate us, coming to life in her beautiful words.
Can you tell us about your creative process and how you came up with this particular aesthetic? I usually start with a memory, some event or sensation that has made a strong impression on me, but which I find difficult to put into words. Sometimes I try to express my impressions in a very small sketch, smaller than my hand. If I feel that there is some truth in that initial image, I start to scale it up and perhaps begin a painting. I always like to keep a notebook handy to collect things I see in my day-to-day life. I use these drawings later, combining them with other drawings from photographs, details from paintings by the Great Masters (from all times and places, in fact), observations in the mirror or friends posing for me, and also imagination. All these elements inform the process that stretches from that initial small black and white sketch to a painting in which I allow myself to use all the colors and materials.
Have you had any defining references or inspirations in your career? My parents, since I was born, with a Paula Rego poster on the kitchen pantry door, Madredeus playing in the living room and Chico Buarque on car journeys, plus trips to the Gulbenkian and CCB with my mother, computer games and conversations about the Universe with my father and walks through Gerês with both of them. In the third cycle, my teacher Zizi entrusted me with the keys to the art room so I could work during my lunch break. In the Fine Arts in Lisbon, Professor João Jacinto's classes, where I heard advice that I still repeat to my students, because they helped me so much, and the encouragement of Professor Pedro Saraiva, who made my first solo exhibition possible. In London, all my colleagues and teachers at the Royal Drawing School, where I found a real second home - Catherine Goodman, Sarah Pickstone, Timothy Hyman, Mark Cazalet... And last but not least, the friends I've met throughout my life whose work always inspires me, such as Nuno Gonçalves, Alice Macdonald, Mark Connolly and Diego García.
There are those who create for pleasure and those who create because they have an inherent need to express themselves... What is your motivation for doing so? Drawing and painting are the tools I carry closest to my chest to try to build bridges between me and the world. I love words but sometimes they fail me (or I fail to use them) and it's in drawing that I find a way to speak, say, regret what I've said, erase, remain silent, make mistakes and correct myself, all on a single sheet of paper. While I paint, I reflect and question, I think of all the possible scenarios, I allow myself to jump over the fence, run away from home, touch someone's shoulder or go back in time. Expressing myself in this way is fundamental to me, as is the conversation that arises afterwards with those who see the work.
Do you ever think about the impact your work will have on the public? My first answer would be yes, but I wonder if I always do, and I don't think so. I constantly think about the outside world when I work - the distinction between me and this outside world is also very debatable - but at some point I know that I have to look at the images in front of me in the studio and pay attention to them without fear. I always try to give myself completely to the process, and sometimes that means letting myself be carried away by what the work asks of me - one mark leads to another, a face appears unexpectedly in an accidental stain - but I am always intrinsically linked to the public, if that means the other, and people and my desire to get close to them are among the main reasons I work in this medium.
In a reality where so much can be created artificially, including art, what do you think the role of an artist is today? There's an engraving by Edvard Munch, a reproduction of which can easily be found by entering "munch consolation" into any online search engine. It was about ten years ago that I came across this image for the first time and to this day I still think of it when I ask myself about the role of art in my life and what kind of work I would like to do. The truth is that even through a screen I look at that set of lines made in a different era to my own and feel the comfort of a hug. This may sound ridiculous, but I strongly believe that art can bring us closer together. I follow with curiosity the work of artists who explore the generation of images using artificial intelligence - I don't know if I'm foolishly optimistic, but I feel that humanity is resilient, with an inexhaustible creative capacity that can always be put at the service of mutual discovery and understanding. In times that are not only marked by a growth in artificiality, but also polarization, I see art as an important vehicle for nuances and ambiguities - a space where conversation is possible and desired.
*Originally translated from the Arts Issue, published November 2023. Full credits and stories in the print issue.
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