Artist Statement
The camera is now a part of his persona and leaves him to concentrate on the aesthetics of an image. He has that freedom to concentrate on the reality behind the facade, capturing the emotions, experiences, and feelings of people in the street.
The great majority of his photographs are black and white; Antonio is convinced that this classic approach is the best way to show reality.The viewer is not distracted by colour, and the eye concentrates on the contrast and lines of a person.
To date he is involved in local collective exhibitions and has been published two or three times in collective books. As he continues to expand on his themes he is looking forward to holding solo exhibitions, hopefully outside of his country of Portugal.

 

 

Antonio was born in Setúbal, Portugal at the end of 1940s. Photography was a family hobby as his father used to take pictures around their hometown of boats, landscapes and people. A special memory he has is of his father and uncle working very late at night in the darkroom.
During his teen years his father lent him his Rolleiflex and taught him how to take pictures. When he became proficient he was given a Pentax and shown how to develop film and print in the darkroom.
His love of photography was cut short when he was called up for compulsory military service and sent off to the former Portuguese colony of Timor, today Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste. On his return he obtained a degree in Architecture and worked as a professional for more than 31 years and had little time for photography. However, some years ago, before his retirement, he recommenced his passion for photography.
Returning to his hometown roots he chairs the local camera group and attends regular meetings every week to discuss experiences, analyze photos, practices, new themes and ways to accomplish them. He continues to learn his craft but has mastered most of the fundamental technical issues, learning, experimenting and fine-tuning his skills.