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VASCO
DIOGO

EXPERIMENTAL VIDEO ARTIST FROM LISBON

ABOUT VASCO DIOGO

PERSONAL BACKGROUND AND CREATIVE APPROACH

Vasco Diogo, born in Lisbon, Portugal in 1970, is an acclaimed experimental cinema and video artist. Residing and working in his hometown, Lisbon, Diogo’s artistic journey began in his early teenage years when he started exploring photography and drawing with a DIY approach. By 18, he ventured into theatre and performance during his university years, a move that later led him to experiment with filming theatre plays. This experience laid the groundwork for his transition into video art, where he found a unique voice in experimental cinema. Since 1998, Diogo has concentrated predominantly on experimental video art and performance, cultivating a style that is as intellectually stimulating as it is artistically groundbreaking.

His formal education aligns with his creative trajectory. Diogo holds a master’s degree in Social Sciences and a PhD in Communication Sciences, with his doctoral research focusing on the aesthetics and ideology of video art. This academic foundation has provided him with the theoretical framework to explore the boundaries of audiovisual media in innovative ways. From 2008 to 2020, Diogo also shared his expertise as a cinema professor at the University of Beira Interior, shaping the next generation of filmmakers and artists.

Through his prolific career, Vasco Diogo has garnered international recognition for his cutting-edge work, delving deep into themes of identity, truth, and manipulation. His creations challenge the norms of communication and perception, pushing audiences to reconsider the ways in which art and media interact with consciousness and societal constructs.

WORKS

EXPLORING THE ART OF VASCO DIOGO

Diogo’s body of work is a captivating exploration of self-awareness and human consciousness, often tackling complex themes such as identity, reality, and manipulation. Much of his art challenges the viewer to confront ambiguous realities, as seen in his video performances where he deconstructs the act of communication itself. Diogo frequently performs in his own videos, making him both the creator and subject, intertwining his personal growth and spiritual explorations with his artistic output. By pushing the boundaries of form and content, his works create immersive experiences that invite viewers to reconsider how they perceive the world around them.

His technical approach is distinctly modern, integrating a broad range of digital mediums such as video performance, real-time video processing, AI, experimental animation, and augmented reality. These techniques are often combined with traditional elements like photography and drawing, resulting in works that straddle both the digital and physical realms. Diogo’s pieces are provocative and often humorous, reflecting the coexistence of multiple levels of reality within a single work. Through these juxtapositions, he invites his audience to experience a sense of disorientation, as if they are learning how to feel and think for the first time within the confines of the art itself.

Over the years, Diogo’s practice has evolved into a blend of daily rigorous studio work and more diaristic, spontaneous projects. He is a prolific creator who often works on multiple projects simultaneously, balancing larger, time-consuming pieces with smaller media works that he may produce in just minutes. His current focus on spoken word and electronic music exemplifies his multidisciplinary approach, expanding his repertoire while maintaining his core themes of experimentation and formalism. Each of his series takes years to complete, showcasing the dedication and depth behind every project.

Cervical Kid
2018
Missing Meaning
2024

ARTIST STATEMENT

A VISIONARY APPROACH TO FREEDOM AND EXPERIMENTATION

As an artist, my work is deeply rooted in the desire for freedom—both for myself as the creator and for those who experience my art. I approach my practice with a sense of liberation, avoiding the rational construction of meaning in favor of a more intuitive, free-associative process. This is fundamental to me because, for me, rationality often acts as the enemy of true artistic exploration. By allowing myself to move freely between concepts and techniques, I can create works that feel fresh and uninhibited, allowing new sensations and perspectives to emerge.

What motivates me to create is the pleasure I derive from the process itself. I am my own first audience, and the thrill of experiencing the work as I make it is crucial to my well-being. At the same time, I believe that art holds a unique power to push boundaries and offer visions that are ahead of their time. In that sense, I view my role as an artist not only as a creator of objects or media but as someone who generates ideas and feelings that challenge societal norms and provoke thought. This is my way of engaging with the world’s problems, though not in a directly illustrative or didactic manner, but through a form of engagement that goes beyond conventional modes of thinking and communication.

Ultimately, my work is about creating experiences that expand consciousness. By playing with perceptions of reality, I aim to offer viewers a kind of recalibration, a moment of disorientation that forces them to rethink how they engage with the world. Whether through video, sound, animation, or any other medium I explore, my goal is to generate work that pushes past mainstream logic, offering instead an experience that is transformative, both for myself and for those who engage with it.

RESUME

EDUCATION, EXHIBITIONS, AWARDS, AND PUBLICATIONS

Education:

  • PhD in Communication Sciences – Audiovisual and Interactive Media, Universidade Nova de Lisboa
    Dissertation: “Video: Specificity, Hybridity, and Experimentation”
    Scholarship by Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), 2006-2008
  • Master’s Degree in Social Sciences, ICS, Universidade de Lisboa
    Thesis: “Portuguese Comedies of 1930/40: Texts and Contexts”
    Scholarship by JNICT, 1997
  • Degree in Sociology, FCSH, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, 1992
  • Attendance at Cinema School, Escola Superior de Teatro e Cinema, 1994-1995
  • Certificate of Proficiency in English, Cambridge University, 1988

Selected Exhibitions:

  • Wide Open Experimental Film Festival, USA
  • Experimental Brasil, Brasil
  • Monstra Lisbon Animated Film Festival, Portugal
  • Bogotá Experimental Film Festival/CineAutopsia, Colombia
  • Portland Festival of Cinema, Animation & Technology, USA
  • Chroma Art Film Festival, USA
  • London Experimental, UK
  • Video Art & Experimental Film Festival, USA
  • InShadow, Portugal
  • VASTLAB Experimental – VLX5, USA
  • Animaze, Canada
  • Australian XR Festival, Australia
  • Supernova Digital Animation Festival, USA
  • Super 9 Mobile Film Fest, Portugal
  • STIFF: Seattle True Independent Film Festival, USA
  • ARTBOX.Project, New York 1.0, Armory Art Weeks, NY, USA
  • It’s Liquid Experimental Art Architecture and Design Festival, Rome, Italy

Selected Awards:

  • “Teatro”, Projecto Teatral, Goethe Institut, Lisbon, 2003 (Award Acarte/Maria Madalena Azeredo Perdigão, Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian)
  • Anexperimentalviralvlog – The Movie Remix #1
  • European Cinematography Awards, 2017 – Best Experimental Film
  • American Filmatic Arts Awards, USA, 2017 – Best Short Video Art / Web / New Media
  • May I? Remix #1
  • Oregon International Film Awards, USA, 2018 – Experimental Film Competition, Platinum Award
  • Paint On Paint #1-8
  • Toronto Indie Film Festival, Canada, 2023 – Winner Experimental Film
  • Berlin Indie Film Festival, Germany, 2021 – Best Sound Design

Media Features and Publications:

  • Featured in Bodies+Cities Skin, Venice, Italy, 2019
  • Rencontres Internationales Paris/Berlin, 2020, France/Germany
  • Various articles and reviews in Portuguese and international media on experimental cinema and video art.

CONTACT DETAILS

GET IN TOUCH

Website: www.vascodiogo.com

Instagram: @vascod

Facebook: vascogabrieldiogo

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