Media Coverage of the Exhibition “Dordio Gomes and Mural Painting in Porto: Lime, Pigments and Pixels”
The exhibition Dordio Gomes and Mural Painting in Porto: Lime, Pigments and Pixels, presented at the Exhibition Pavilion of the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Porto, has received significant attention across both media and institutional platforms, highlighting its artistic, heritage and research relevance. Media coverage has emphasised the exceptional character of the exhibition, which brings together and makes publicly accessible a substantial body of the Portuguesw painter’s mural production -works that are typically difficult to view due to their architectural integration.
As reported by Porto Canal, the exhibition presents the artist’s mural work through a wide range of interpretive and display strategies, including full-scale digital reproductions, architectural models, preparatory drawings and
interactive environments. The curatorial approach foregrounds the structural invisibility of modern mural painting, often confined within buildings, removed from their original contexts, and exposed to processes of deterioration or transformation.
As one statement notes:
“A sua obra mural […] fica muitas vezes encerrada no interior de edifícios […] descontextualizadas, inacessíveis, vulneráveis.” Porto Canal 11.02.2026
Within this framework, the exhibition functions as a form of public restitution of an urban heritage that is both difficult to conserve and difficult to display. Digital technologies enable monumental architectural works to be relocated into the exhibition space and made accessible to broader audiences:
“Quisemos dar a conhecer a obra […] agora que, por meios digitais, podemos levar este tipo de obras monumentais […] para um espaço expositivo.” Porto Canal 11.02.2026
Coverage also underlines the social dimension of mural painting as a fundamentally public art form embedded in the urban environment:
“A pintura mural não tem valor comercial […] existe na cidade, é de todos e para todos.” Porto Canal 11.02.2026
From an institutional perspective, the exhibition is presented as an outcome of the research project Mural in Motion, led by the Institute of Art History (NOVA FCSH) in colaboration with the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Porto.
Institutional communications stress that the project integrates material documentation, digital reproduction and historical contextualisation to address the complex relationship between artwork, architecture, patronage and public reception, what the project describes as the “mural equation”.
According to the Institute of Art History, this aspect of the artist’s production remains insufficiently known to the public:
"Esta dimensão da sua obra permanece ainda pouco conhecida do grande público.” (Instituto de História da Arte)
Murals whose architectural nature prevents their displacement are granted renewed visibility through digital capture and reconstruction:
“Os murais […] cuja natureza arquitetónica impede a sua deslocação, ganham agora nova visibilidade através da digitalização.” (Instituto de História da Arte)
The exhibition also aims to raise awareness of the conservation challenges posed by mural painting integrated into the urban fabric, encouraging reflection on its transmission as shared cultural heritage:
“Sensibilizar o público para as questões que a pintura mural […] levanta hoje, enquanto património integrado no tecido da cidade.” (Agenda Porto)
Additional regional coverage highlights the exhibition’s role in revisiting the artist’s career trajectory and presenting mural works produced between 1944 and 1961 within their historical and territorial contexts.
Overall, media and institutional reception converge on several key themes: the public re‑visibility of architecturally embedded heritage; the role of digital technologies as research and mediation tools; the need to address the conservation of modern mural painting; and the importance of restoring these works to contemporary cultural discourse. The exhibition thus emerges as a platform that combines historical research, digital technology and heritage communication, offering a renewed interpretation of Dordio Gomes’ mural legacy and its place within the urban memory of Porto.
Online dissemination
Media outlets
Porto Canal 11.02.2026
Exposição mostra quase todo o trabalho mural de Dordio Gomes no Porto
Alentejo Ilustrado 11.02.2026
Legado mural do pintor Dordio Gomes reunido em exposição no Porto – Alentejo Ilustrado
Alentrium 11.02.2026
De Arraiolos para o Porto: Exposição recupera a obra mural de Dórdio Gomes – Alentrium
Institutional channels
Instituto de História da Arte
Faculdade de Belas Artes da Universidade do Porto
FBAUP – Exposição | Dordio Gomes e a pintura mural no Porto: cal, pigmentos e píxeis
Instagram IHA + FBAUP
Universidade do Porto
Exposição Dordio Gomes e a pintura mural no Porto
Câmara Municipal do Porto – Agenda Porto