Watercolor at Praça da República in Santa Maria da Feira
2025-09-12
Watercolor at Praça da República in Santa Maria da Feira, almost a postcard scene. Back in September, I was invited by illustrator Vasco Mota to join the AmarElos festival, put on by the Arthénon cooperative, over in Santa Maria da Feira. The idea was exactly that, go there and draw a bit of the city.
I was on the street where Arthénon is. Heading up toward Praça da República, I found a great view of the street climbing up to the castle. That’s where this watercolor at Praça da República in Santa Maria da Feira came together, right in front of me.
The little street had old houses, with flowering balconies. The green of Quinta do Castelo filled out the scene, climbing in layers up the hillside. At the top, the towers of the Castelo da Feira peeked through the trees, almost hidden. All that was missing were little flags fluttering, to complete that postcard feeling.
Painting This Watercolor at Praça da República in Santa Maria da Feira
I kept this view in my sketchbook, with pen and watercolor, between one conversation and another during the festival. It was a good day of urban sketching, far from Porto, in a city I still barely knew.
This watercolor at Praça da República ended up being a good reason to go back. Santa Maria da Feira ended up being a good reason to go back. Santa Maria da Feira keeps that kind of corner you only find by walking, without rushing, with the right invitation.