Chaves | ‘The Meaning of Art’ Exhibition

Next Saturday, 4 July, the Municipality of Chaves will mark a decade of the MACNA – Nadir Afonso Museum of Contemporary Art – establishing itself as a leading venue for the promotion and appreciation of contemporary art.

The commemorative programme includes, at 11.00 am, the opening of the exhibitions *Cartographies for the Infinite* or *“The Meaning of Art”* and *Crossing Paths*, which bring together two of the most significant figures in Portuguese art and architecture: Nadir Afonso (1920–2013) and Álvaro Siza (1933), offering new perspectives on their creative journeys and artistic affinities.

Curated by Rui A. Maia, the exhibition *Cartographies for the Infinite or ‘The Meaning of Art’* traces the evolution of Nadir Afonso’s work, from his early experiments marked by distortion and expressionist language, through surrealism and fragmentation—where emptiness plays a decisive role—to the geometrisation that characterises his proposal for a new artistic synthesis.

Meanwhile, ‘Caminhos Cruzados’, curated by António Choupina, reveals the points of contact between the artistic journeys of Álvaro Siza and Nadir Afonso, drawing on a collection of drawings, watercolours and gouaches produced by Siza during his childhood and youth, including the period of his training at the Porto School of Fine Arts.

Admission is free, and everyone is invited to attend the commemorative event and visit the exhibitions marking a decade of activity at this venue of great cultural significance.