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Established in 2010 and consolidated in its present form in 2013, Underdogs works with a diversified roster of Portuguese and international artists connected with the urban inspired contemporary art universe, fostering the development of close relationships between creators, the public, and the city with the aim of promoting art as an everyday experience.
Intimate and personal, the new body of work revealed in this exhibition transports the viewer on a journey into Raquel Belli's family heritage and history. Drawing on her multicultural background, the artist dives into the lives, experiences and memories of her maternal family in the former Portuguese colonial territory of Goa, India, creating a vivid and enticing juxtaposition of different themes and compositions.
Raquel Belli explores the aesthetics of this photographic treasure and the unique era it depicts, interlacing identifiable traces of western culture with local sensory experiences. European fashion, hairstyles, poses and atmospheres are intricately woven with tropical sceneries, flowers and fruit-bearing plants, creating striking and yet unexpectedly symbiotic visual contrasts.
Acutely aware that verbal generational transmission is inherently prone to loss and open to interpretation, and that memory is not a trustworthy ally, the artist lets each piece speak for itself, devoid of any specific intention or judgment. A presentation of a complex and even controversial context that acknowledges the weight of history but is not overpowered by it.
