Born in France in 1974, Ricardo Cruzes is a painter and communication design graduate from ARCA-EUAC (Coimbra 93-98), mentored by Armando Azevedo, João Dixo, and António Modesto. Transitioning into entrepreneurship, he co-founded Design ao Vivo and Moonshapes, overseeing the conception, management, and production of diverse creative projects. His portfolio includes collaborations with clients like J. Walter Thompson, Banco Santander, Instituto Português de Museus, BP - British Petroleum, and Montez Champalimaud. Ricardo's expertise led him to speak at the National Museum of Archeology, recognized by UNESCO for his work on the museum's website (1st place worldwide awarded in the Museums and Heritage category).
Selected for the Lisbon Challenge program, he introduced the Feedcruncher product with global reach. As co-founder of Proppy CRM (now Casafari CRM), he contributed to its merger/acquisition by the multinational Casafari.
Since 2022 he has been a full-time artist and resident at LAC - Laboratory of Creative Activities, in Lagos. Ricardo also serves as the Co-Curator for LAC's annual itinerant exhibitions. Collaborative projects include "Cruzes + Vargas (Portugal <> Kuwait) with Rui Vargas and "Hyperactive Memory Ruins" (Portugal <> Norway) with Joel Arantes.
Ricardo Cruzes' artistic endeavors unfold as vivid and often autobiographical dialogues, portraying states of tension, passion, and irony. The conversation between the artist and his work gives birth to soulful expressions, delving into instituted reasons, social theories, communal exploration, and diverse missions. Balancing on the border between the abstract and figurative, landscapes and characters evolve across pieces and narratives, embodying questions, answers, and internal messages. Dialogues manifest as contrasting formal approaches – rational, enterprising, and critical juxtaposed with the primitive, expressive, and childlike. With an ever-observant and inquisitive stance, Ricardo rejects a singular form or medium, prioritizing the resolution of existential discussions at each moment. He engages in an experimental excavation of chapters within an infinite novel, utilizing various tools to navigate these explorations. As a multi-disciplinary artist, Ricardo Cruzes ventures into painting, drawing, writing, installation, sound design, video, and photography. His artistic journey is viewed as an experimental odyssey, where stages are marked by continual new beginnings. Form not only serves the concept but also shapes it, influenced by the irrationality introduced by his alter ego. Collaborating in duo projects with architect Rui Vargas (Kuwait) and sculptor Joel Arantes Correia (Norway), Ricardo's curatorial approach is rooted in intercultural dialogues and community-inspired creation.
Artistic CV
2024
- “Uma Manifesta Acção”, exhibition by Cruzes + Vargas featuring Joel Arantes, at Lagos Cultural Center, curated by Cláudia Melo.
2023
- Group exhibition, “Open Day” ADAO and LAC, Barreiro;
- Ricardo Cruzes + Rui Vargas, “Construções na Areia” at Gama Rama gallery, Faro;
- Group exhibition, “Água Forte” at Museu do Hospital Termal das Caldas da Rainha, Caldas da Rainha;
- Group exhibition, “Ponto de Fuga” at 289 gallery, Faro (participation and co-curatorship with Pedro Correia);
- Group exhibition, “Viagens” at Ermida de São Roque, Tavira, with Rodrigo Gomes, Mateus Verde and Nuno Murta. Curatorship by Luís Fernandes (gnration, Braga). Exhibition as part of the selection for the Magalhães Project, implemented by Museu Zero and financed by the Instituto Lusíada de Cultura-ILC. Rotation/exhibitions planned between Portugal and Spain;
- Ricardo Cruzes + Rui Vargas, “Cidade Indómita” at A Sede gallery, Porto;
- Ricardo Cruzes + Rui Vargas, “Beyond Architecture“ - Group exhibition and event by Maracujália, at Casa da Arquitetura, Matosinhos. Participation of: Ana Aragão, Corpo Atelier, Cruzes + Vargas, experimental +, Fala, Francisco Costa, Mafalda Mendonça, Maria Souto Moura, Miguel Gomes + Mariana Lopes, Nuno Pimenta, Nuno M. Sousa, Pedro Gramacho.;
- Sound design and live presentation in the performance “Salvem os Vissungos”, by Ana Maria Pintora, as part of the Roots residency, at LAC, in Lagos.
2022
- Compostival 2022, “Fake Blonde Creature”, in Peniche. Curatorship by Inês Ferreira-Norman;
- “Dias de Hoje”, at Chasing Rabbits gallery, in Campo de Ourique, Lisboa;
- Ricardo Cruzes + Rui Vargas, “A Soma das Partes”, at LAC – Laboratório de Actividades Criativas, in Lagos;
- Group exhibition, “Contendores”, at “The Hood” pop up gallery, in Amadora, Lisboa;
- Group exhibition “UIVO”, Mostra de Ilustração, at Fórum da Maia, in Porto.