MEET
Armanda Alves
Armanda Alves is a self-taught Angolan abstract artist whose expressive, intuitive approach merges gesture, colour, and emotion into powerful visual statements. Currently based in Portugal, her practice bridges personal introspection with cultural memory, positioning her as a compelling voice among contemporary African women artists in the diaspora.
Armanda began painting informally, creating for herself and close friends. But in May 2008, her debut solo exhibition at Galeria Celamar in Luanda, Angola, revealed a deeper calling — one that would lead her down a new, more intentional artistic path.
Her work is defined by expressive abstraction, a language of poetic colour, raw texture, and emotional depth. Armanda is known for her unconventional technique: she paints entirely with her fingers, forging a direct connection between body and canvas. This tactile process creates layered, visceral compositions that defy structure and embrace spontaneity.
Her abstract paintings often blur the line between the serene and the wild, exploring silence, light, rhythm, and movement with remarkable sensitivity. Described by fellow artist Alfredo Luz as “tenderly rebellious,” her works resist conformity while casting an almost meditative spell over the viewer.
Now entering a phase of creative maturity, Armanda continues to explore her visual voice with growing clarity. Her art transcends formal categories — serving as emotional landscapes, acts of self-expression, and visual archives of personal transformation.
