About the work
Made in 1963, Manège belongs to ESPIGA Pinto’s early Alentejo period, when drawing, engraving and sculpture were closely connected in the formation of his visual language. The work reflects a moment in which the artist was returning to the world of his childhood with what he later described as a different vision.
The horse was already becoming one of ESPIGA Pinto’s essential motifs. In his Interview in Monologue, he recalled being born in a house where horses passed the door each day and where there were stables nearby, later associating the animal with “beauty, shape and movement”. In Manège, that memory is not treated as simple recollection. The horse and rider are reduced to a strong arrangement of black form, cut line and open paper, giving the image an almost sculptural clarity.
The title, with its reference to the riding arena, places the horse within a space of rhythm, discipline and controlled movement. This gives the work a distinct place among ESPIGA Pinto’s horse images: spare, direct and rooted in the early graphic language through which lived rural experience began to take on a lasting symbolic form. Another impression of this woodcut is held in the CAM Gulbenkian collection, underlining the work’s place within the artist’s recognised early printmaking.
Details
Artist: ESPIGA Pinto
Title: Manège (Picadeiro)
Date: 1963
Medium: Woodcut on paper
Dimensions: 47 x 56 cm
Edition: Ed. Espiga, 29 of 50
Collection note: Another impression is held in the CAM Gulbenkian collection
Signed, dated and numbered by the artist.
Condition
The paper displays soft, irregular cockling, or gentle wave-like undulation, throughout the unprinted areas and around the perimeter. This form of planar distortion is consistent with the paper’s response to fluctuations in ambient humidity over decades.
A horizontal fold line is visible across the lower margin, with further fine linear impressions and handling creases, particularly in the upper-right and lower areas. Mild scattered brown spotting is present, principally in the margins, together with minor edge wear and small tears along the right edge.
The central printed image appears substantially flatter than the surrounding unprinted paper. The black impression remains dense, clearly defined and visually strong, preserving the work’s graphic impact.
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FRAME NOT INCLUDED. This artwork is sold unframed. Bespoke framing options and framing advice are available. Please contact us. Any frame, mount or room setting shown in images is for illustrative purposes only. Please check the stated artwork dimensions before ordering.
