“I’ve always loved drawing! With ink, pens, and brushes.
For me, any other way of doing it is a great sorrow.
The art of drawing has always been an unlimited territory that laymen try to confine.
(And) if the incompetent believe that ‘new tools’ will draw for them…
praising art and without haste, I continue on my path.” — José-Manuel Xavier
Many editions of MONSTRA would have been poorer without the presence of José-Manuel Xavier’s films, often opening the festival.
At first glance, one might not immediately grasp the significance of this draftsman, creator, and poet of movement in Portuguese animation. His legacy stretches back decades—perhaps before some of us were even born—yet we unknowingly grew up with advertisements drawn and animated by him, alongside his great friend and mentor, Armando Servais Tiago.
A stifling regime led him to France, where he still lives today and where he created some of the most groundbreaking works in French and global animation.
Beyond his moving images on screen, MONSTRA | Lisbon Animation Festival is proud to present, for the first time, José-Manuel Xavier’s visual art. ‘Outros Movimentos’ brings together nearly 100 works, including engravings, drawings, paintings, and even a Chinese book, offering a profound exploration of his artistic journey.
A thinker, writer, animator, and tireless draftsman, Xavier’s unmistakable line carries motion, poetry, and rhythm. This collection is infused with the same lyricism, musicality, and movement found in his films and his studies on the illusion of motion.
His work will be on display at the Sociedade Nacional de Belas-Artes from March 14 to April 12, accompanied by a catalog featuring a foreword by Luís Tinoco, winner of the 2024 Prémio Pessoa, with whom Xavier collaborates on the short film ‘Mind the Gap’.