My studio near Southampton

Some photos of my studio where i live near Southampton. If you need to contact me to know me and talk about my artwork, please email me to anaviaaurea@gmail.com.

My work as an artist and social carer in UK

Below you can see an artwork made by Mrs. N. and myself.
Mrs. N. suffered of the Alzheimer disease and died March 2015. Rest in peace with the Angels dear friend and Mum. More than a patient or a client, she was a friend and a big part of my family as i was considered as one of them (the family). Thanks Sabira for all your support and warm friendship.

Exhibitions

Carlos Martins and Ana Santos, the portuguese surrealist artists that create and manage this blog they exhibited their artworks in many art galleries and museums, national and internationally. We just show some exhibits with more emphasis and prominence in the course of these authors, including some national group exhibitions and especially international exhibitions dedicated to Surrealism and organized by leading members of the Surrealist movement.
To read more information on some of the exhibitions we participated or even organized, please click the link "Biographies" on the left side of this screen.

Carlos Martins is represented at the Museum of Surrealism in Vila Nova de Famalicão at the collection of the Foundation Cupertino de Miranda and based on the estate of the poet and painter Mário Cesariny, one of the founders of the Surrealist Group of Lisbon in 1947. You can access the site of FCM and the Museum of Surrealism here at Museum of Surrealism. 
Mario Cesariny died in November 26, 2006, exactly ten years ago. 


...  (to be continued)

Creative Craft

As artists we use various supports, one of them pottery (jugs, plates, vases but also wood, glass and others). Aware that the craft is addressed to a different audience (collectors, shops, etc.), we try to be unique and creative, as if they were works of painting on canvas or other medium.
Our pieces are always signed by their authors (Ana and I). Traditional crafts it is equally interesting, especially when it is also unique and imaginative as is the case with the handicrafts of the older civilizations or regions where it is the result of the efforts of several generations of artisans.
Art Galleries and craft shops can contact us if want to exhibit our pieces on a regular basis or for a single exhibition. Our email address is carlosmartins@gmail.com or alternatively anaviaaurea@gmail.com.


The pieces below are in some cases very recent, others were created some years ago but we kept in our studio and gallery.



CRAFT BY ANA SANTOS

                                     Traditional Jar                      Modern Jar 1

                                         Modern Jar 2                  Modern Jar 3
  
                                                                                                                                                    

 

Modern Jar 4

Note: The pieces marked "modern craft" are the same piece presented in "Modern Craft 1" but seen at different angles.

 

                                        Modern Craft - Surrealist Plate

My work as a social carer

One of my favourite professional activities is social and child care. When i was living in Lisbon, the city where i was born, i also worked as a social and child carer and also entertainer and actress. On stage i perfomed various plays for children.
After a long period of economical crisis I decided with the support of my husband to travel to London where i also worked and lived as an aupair when i was studying theater during the sixties. Now i am living and working near Southampton (UK) and i am taking care of a lady that suffer from Parlinson disease.
I am a social carer certified and accredited by various British institutions.

I do a lot of work to give the best quality of life to my clients (which I also consider my family) and always try to apply all my experience as a painter and entertainer to help them to be more active, creative and happy, seeking to reveal their own potentialities in a natural way.
In this section of the blog I intend to talk about my work namely in the aforementioned area (art and craft as a therapy) and also show some of the artistic work done with my clients.
The results are, in many cases, absolutely amazing and positive both for me, human and artistically, as for my clients, who feel more involved and active which contributes largely to halt the progression of their disease.

Note: The names of the persons involved, except in my case, such as the locations, will obviously be hidden or identified with only one initial (Example: Mrs. W. or Mr. P).

Yours, Warmly
Ana Santos (as a social worker my name is Ana Martins)


PHOTOS OF ARTWORKS MADE BY MRS N. AND MYSELF:

 

 A collective artwork made by Mrs N., her daugther and myself. 

 

A collage made by Mrs N. and myself (inspired by Christmas, 2015)

              Automatic painting (Rorschach method) made by Mrs. N. and myself

 PHOTOS OF ARTWORKS MADE BY MRS W. AND MYSELF:

Mrs. W. did it alone. The family was so fascinated.

                          A collage-painting and a naturalist painting

            

                      Painting of a jar with flowers and a naturalist painting

                              Painting based on the rorschach method



 

TO BE CONTINUED.......(Very sorry)

Maldoror 2016

A collage-painting by Carlos Martins. Acrylic on Canson paper. This is a collage-painting dedicated to Isidore Ducasse, the Compte de Lautréamont and his book "Les Chants de Maldoror". A special and unique characteristic of this artwork is that the title is constantly changed according to the current year. 
This artwork was exhibited at the International Surrealist Exhibition entitled "Trip to Arcturus" dedicated to Mário Cesariny and was published by the main portuguese newspaper "Expresso" and it is edited on the catalogue of the exhibiition. 

Isidore Ducasse, Compte de Lautréamont was born in Montevideo, Uruguay in 1846.

Quotes

"Beautiful… as the fortuitous encounter of a sewing machine and an umbrella on a dissecting table."

"Poetry must be made by all and not by one."

You can get a lot of information about the Compte of Lautreamont and his poetic novel "Les Chants de Maldoror" following the link to this Google Search page .

Our Facebook page

If you want to visit us on Facebook, please follow the following link or click the link under the image below:

https://www.facebook.com/via.aurea

 

If you want to visit us on Facebook, click here

Collages

I am mainly a collagist more than a painter. I started in 1973 doing it as a legacy from painters of the begining of the XX century like Picasso, Bracque and others. They were famous more as painters but also did many collages - then called "Papiers Collés" or "glued papers". The term "collage" came later with the surrealists who used collage as one of the most automatic and therefore less streamlined forms of artistic expression.

Collage is in itself a more spontaneous form of expression, but this does not create limits to the free expression of the artist. Collage can also express the artist's emotions and not just stick to paper on a surface.

On the other hand the collage is not photo-montage as wrongly many "experts" identify it. This way of expression can even use objects and other things found even in the garbage as did some of the Dada and later by Surrealists. It is also a way of giving back some dignity of these objects thrown into the trash and treated as such (magazines, newspapers, birthday cards, old photographs, etc.).

Some of the collages i show below were exhibited in several national and international exhibitions namely those dedicated to Surrealism:

These two collages were exhibited at the gallery of ISPA (The Institut of Applied Psicology) in Lisbon, the year of 1994.

 These two collage-paintings "Trabalho (work) and "Proximidade" (Proximity) belong to the private collection of the Turkey Surrealist Group and they were exhibited on the Turkey Surrealists event "...". . Not for sale.

  This is a collage-painting entitled "The Audrey´s Smile" and is dedicated to Audrey Hepburn one of the best actresses in the past. For sale.

  

Titles and other notes: Under construction. Sorry.

 

The Surrealists - Between dream and action

Contrary to what some experts say, Surrealism remains alive and active as is easy to prove by the numerous groups and organizations spread across the five continents. Not only in the artistic expression but also in its intervention in multiple domains (philosophical, social, political).

ENTRE LE RÊVE ET L´ACTION

Ana Santos

Hi,
My name is Ana Santos. I am a painter (painting and ceramics) but also am a professional social carer. I am now living and working near Southampton as a social carer mainly for elderly suffereing from different kinds of dementia. You can find below my bio and some of my artworks. You can also visit our Home Gallery (see on the menu on the left) and if travel to Portugal, you can also visit our Home Gallery (a real one inside our small house in Sesimbra, Portugal).

ANA SANTOS

Born in Lisbon in 1950. After secondary school, she became interested in art at once, first as a model and later as a photographer and photo assistant, working directly with the Portuguese photographer Sérgio Guimarães. He lived and worked in the years 60/70 in New York, London, Paris, Berlin and other European cities.
Later in the mid-70s, he was dedicated to the puppet theater, and participated as an actress in numerous festivals of the kind. Following this experience as AS puppeteer was invited to join the independent company of the Iberian Theatre, been the company's lead actress in late 1983. In this capacity participated in numerous national and international representations (Lisbon, Porto, Madrid, Sitges (Barcelona ), Murcia and El Paso (USA). In this last international festival she won the award for the best leading actress.
In the same year cooperates with Mario Cesariny and Carlos Martins (with whom would marry a year later), in organizing the international exhibition "Surrealism and Painting Fantastic." After the exhibition leaves the house where they lived and travels with her husband to the Northeast Algarve and both create the first art gallery in the region. The gallery called "Nova Atlântida" (New Atlantis) and  conducted several collective and individual exhibitions for about five years, and quickly won the recognition of local cultural resources and Spain (see Directory Art Portugal / Spain published in both countries).
Back in Lisbon in 1991 continues to participate in various national and international exhibitions, including the ISPA art gallery with names like Cruzeiro Seixas, Raul Perez and Carlos Martins.
From 1994 to 2014 back to work as a theatrical actress and entertainer acting for children and adults in various kinds of events.
In November 2014 travels to London and then to Southampton where she currently lives and works as a social carer in particular to support and assist the elderly with Alzheimer's disease or Parkinson and applying his experience as a painter and ceramist in the creative occupation of the elderly recreational and artistic activities.
Her artworks (in painting and in artistic ceramics), are counted by thousands and are currently part of private collections, particularly in the US, Germany, Austria, Portugal, United Kingdom, Belgium, among many others.
Recently Ana was in Portugal (Sesimbra) to open her own art gallery (called on this blog as "Home Gallery").

Invitation to our visitors and followers

Next May, 2017 we will open our private art gallery to our guests and regular visitors of this blog. Not a public opening. It will be an opportunity you take some holidays and also visit this region called "The three Castles" and the beautiful montains of Serra da Arrábida near the village where we live. We will welcome all of you with a warmly and friendly athmosphere, some delicious dishes of Portuguese gastronomy and the famous portuguese wine. 
If you intend to come please let us know with a month in advance.

A delicoous plate with tuna fish, sardines, tomate sauce and potatoes. 

House and Garden

On this section we´ll try to show some aspects of the house and our biological home garden. Photos will be taken during the different seasons and showing the evolution of plants and trees. 

 

Art and Nature, we mixed both...

Art and Nature are not contraditory. Art it is not painting the nature as it is but as Surrealists said as artists decide to be in their eyes and minds. These photos just can shows that both, Art and Nature (fruits, plants, herbs) can be combined.

The death of Leonard Cohen

As independent artists we can not fail to register our deep sorrow and sadness for the disappearance of one of the great golden voices of our time - Leonard Cohen died and it was not only the World that lost a great Friend, it was the Universe itself.

ArtWork in progress

On this section we will show some of our artwork in progress, painting or creative craft as you can see on the photo below. Mostly of this work is constantly changing and the final result is always something different. However this gives an idea about the first stage of some ideas and projects.

More photos of some artwork in progress (painting):

These recent photos were taken in the middle of the garden (near the lemon tree).