ADD FUEL is the work of Portuguese artist Diogo Machado.

Constructed in the 1960s, the Torre neighbourhood in Cascais was originally designed to house the fishermen and their families who were relocated from the town centre. In 2016, many of the original families still lived in the more than 30 buildings. Traditionally, the fishwives, known in Portugal as “varinas”, used to sell the fresh fish their husbands brought home from the sea. My work with azulejos tries to bring Portuguese traditional culture to the present, to re-think it and help preserve it. However, the varinas are, unfortunately, disappearing. Shortly after I started this mural, I was told that some forty-odd years ago a varina named Helena used to sell her fish right in front of this very wall. Happy coincidences.

Photo © Miguel Oliveira