COMMUNITY The Chairs Roundabout is on Rua da Républica near Lagos Health Centre, leading towards the N125.
Chairs and roundabouts Roundabouts proliferate in Portugal, but so does the engaging public art that often adorns these traffic islands. For years many of us in Lagos have negotiated the emblematic Chairs Roundabout on the Avenida da República. Last December an intriguing set of new chairs, looking distinctly different, appeared on the island. They were initially covered in tarpaulin and then revealed in all their glory, arousing a great deal of curiosity. Why were they substituted and what’s the significance of the chairs? My trail leads to Vera Gonçalves, a distinguished sculptor who has been working in Lagos for over 40 years. I spend an interesting afternoon in her atelier in Espiche and learn about her background, her artwork and why the Chairs Roundabout is so special to her. Vera was born in Lisbon and grew up in an artistic environment with her mother being a painter and father, a well-known architect. "I always mingled with artists and visited lots of exhibitions and
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museums. Conversations in the house inevitably centred on these topics. I had my perfect aesthetic education at home," she smiles. It was hardly surprising then that she chose to embark on a career as a sculptor. She completed a Fine Arts course in Lisbon, but Lagos beckoned in the form of João Cutileiro. He is an eminent sculptor, perhaps best known for designing the sculpture of King Sebastian in 1973 that still takes centre stage on Praça Gil Eanes.
"I wanted to create something meaningful that is intimately connected with our own lives and history"
Photos © João Cabrita
BY LENA STRANG
