ASUR is Albufeira-based, and his work can be found in various places in the Algarve, throughout Portugal and around the world. The artist shared that he usually works in Albufeira, where he lives and where he has several commissions spread throughout the marina, restaurants, bars and hotels. “If you pay attention and walk through the streets of Albufeira you may suddenly see my wall by surprise.”
ASUR shared with Central Magazine that he has 18 years of experience in graffiti and that he started painting at just 11 years old, confiding that it is something he has always really enjoyed doing, “I live for graffiti and it is relaxing for my mind, almost like sailing.”
ASUR revealed that art to him means freedom. “When I am painting it is like everyone disappears and it is just me and the wall in that moment and sometimes I find myself talking to the spray paints about what I am painting and if it is going well or what I should have done. It is that moment of relaxation that I really enjoy.”
Let’s dive straight into the front cover with the iconic turtle, where ASUR said “First of all, I have to thank you for the invitation to be on the cover of your magazine, it is always a pleasure to collaborate with people who value our work and like what we do, thank you.”
ASUR revealed that “The turtle on the cover was painted at an urban art festival in Cascais who chose the theme Ecosystem and Sea Pollution.
It took six days to complete this mural painting and it was painted inside a kindergarten, you can imagine how happy the kids were, right? As this painting was to be included in a school for young children, I didnt want to paint something too hardcore so I thought I would demonstrate how beautiful the bottom of the sea is for the youngest children and of course kids love tutles. Have you ever imagined what it would be like for children to see a turtle walking through marigolds? They are both important things in our ecosystem that we must respect and care for.”
The Urban Art Scene
ASUR admitted that he does not “see a big change in the Algarve when it comes to the urban art scene, “we do have several walls and various arts spread across the Algarve, but not in large numbers like European cities, as you can see in Lisbon, for example, there is a lot of urban art everywhere, but at the end of the day, I also like it better this way, not excess but with quality.”
Adding that, “I notice that here in the Algarve, street art has taken away the prominence of graffiti a little. I used to paint graffiti, letters, I painted on the street illegally at night and at that time I noticed that there were more people painting on the street, nowadays you don’t see much of that anymore... people are also growing, opinions are changing, responsibilities are different and they no longer want to take the risk of running away from the police all night by painting walls and so on, but there are still a few but not as many as before.”
Breaking out of Portugal
ASUR explained that he has always wanted to make his name known in the world of urban art and graffiti and to have some work outside of Portugal so he started attending open calls at festivals, “You dont get paid but you do get your name out there, so I used to do one or two festivals a year but there came a point where I started to be invited to do paid projects. It is always good to represent Portugal and say I am Portuguese, I am here painting and I started from the bottom.”
ASUR also shared that looking back his career so far has been has been a highlight. “I never thought I’d be where I am, so it is a great achievement, every day we have to fight to overcome various objectives, overcome difficulties, overcome day-to-day life and every day we have to be in the race to stand out from each other.”
Shooting for the Moon
“Another highlight for me has been starting to travel and paint around the world, discovering new cultures, new people, new artists and going to a foreign country and people getting to know what my name, knowing what I paint and seeing me there in their country and treating me like a true artist, I think it’s actually a dream.”
In terms of the future, ASUR’s main objective is to be healthy in order to be able to paint. He would like to progress even more internationally and to work more abroad with bigger projects, companies and brands so that his name is recognised everywhere.”
ASUR does a lot of commission work as he makes a living from graffiti but wanted to take the opportunity to say “I have to really thank the people who ask for my work and who like my art as that is super important to me.”
If readers would like to support ASUR, the best way to reach out to him for commissions is by email ASUR_PT@OUTLOOK.COM or by Instagram @ASUR_PT. For more information and to keep up to date with the artist, please follow ASUR on social media: Instagram: @ASUR_PT and on Facebook: @ASUR.PT.