With an abstract and symbolic character, the works of Joana Escoval are a call to nature. The extremely delicate sculptural elements that she builds, evoke others taken from the vegetable, mineral and animal world, not in a mimetic or literal way but as formal echoes that provoke unexpected encounters to those who observe them.

Through the use of various organic and natural materials, but mostly through the manipulation of thin metallic threads, non-ferrous and indeed precious, like silver and gold that carry with them symbolisms related to mutation, alchemy and transmutation, Escoval also seems to transpose to her installations natural states of matter such as evaporation and sublimation, for they seem to be about to disappear or be transformed into something different given the rarefaction of the sculptural composition in the exhibition space.

The artwork Clean wather provides healthy forests #5 is an example of the visible organic quality and formal synthesis that characterize the work of this artist, as well as the poetic narrative that entail. The circles in gold, the copper threads that move with the dislocation of air, the “roots” or “branches” in silver,suspended on the wall, constitute elements that emphasise the relation of men with nature in a continuous and symbiotic way, and they also permit the connection with the sensitive dimension of matter. The works of Joana Escoval invite discovery, but require all our attention and care.

Theodore Ereira-Guyer

Artworks

Places we used to play (garden, forest, woods) xxx2019

Mário Eloy

Joana Escoval