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“Media and advertising are the favorite themes for Pop Art, which celebrates the consumer society with its immutable fashion. The enthusiasm generated by Pop Art since the first works appeared has never faded – it is greater than ever today.

An example of this is the collection of recent works by Marisa Mártires, exhibited at Pátio das Letras, with her paintings, collages, decals, denouncing the urban language of advertisements, comics, photography, design, sometimes with positive intent, others ironic or critical. Her painting contrasts with clean surfaces, interspersed with images of mythical and important figures from international culture, adding famous phrases intentionally marked. The choice of images of well-known characters from the political, religious, cinema, theater and art fields make a nostalgic appeal to ideals.

Originally from England in the mid-1950s, Pop Art developed its full potential in the United States in the 1960s. It was more precisely in New York, Manhattan, with names such as Roy Richtenstein, Claes Oldenburg, James Rosenquist, Tom Wesselmann and of course, the best known, Andy Warhol, among others who revealed themselves in this artistic current.”

Maria de São José Horta Green, 17th April, 2011

 “Pop Art is popular, witty, mocking, sexy, young.”

Richard Hamilton