When Football Meets Art: The Story Behind Sonhadores

As an artist, some projects go far beyond the creation of a work of art. Sonhadores is one of them.

It all began when Paulo Lopo, then President of the C.F. Estrela da Amadora SAD, invited me to take on a challenge: to create a work that could represent not only the identity of the club, but also the identity of the city and the values that unite them.

At that time, I knew very little about the world of football. It wasn't part of my background. But I have always believed that every challenge is an opportunity to discover a new language. So I accepted the project with curiosity and an open mind.

Discovering the Soul of Amadora

Before I put pencil to paper, I did what I always do: I began by understanding the story.

As I discovered Amadora, I quickly realized that the true inspiration wasn't football itself—it was the people who live there. A city where individuals from every corner of the world live together, meet, respect one another, and build a shared identity.

That reality deeply moved me.

I understood that my work should not simply portray a football club, but the women, men, and children who give this city its soul.

Every Project Begins with Research

Every artwork I create starts with historical research.

For Sonhadores, I returned to a place that has long inspired my artistic practice: the National Tile Museum (insta : @museunazulejo) in Lisbon.

For years, I have studied the history of Portuguese azulejos—their compositions, decorative motifs, and their remarkable ability to tell stories through ceramics.

For this project, I drew inspiration from the narrative azulejos of the 17th and 18th centuries, not to reproduce them, but to reinterpret them through a contemporary artistic language.

This same approach also lies at the heart of my exhibition Esperança Além do Horizonte (Hope Beyond the Horizon), presented at the National Tile Museum between 2022 and 2023.

Why Inclusion?

Very quickly, the central theme became clear.

Amadora is undoubtedly one of Portugal's most multicultural cities. Every day, people of different cultures, religions, and backgrounds live side by side.

Its diversity is not an exception.

It is part of its identity.

I chose to express this richness through a monumental azulejo mural where differences become a source of strength.

My intention was simple: to show that within a team—as within a society—it is our differences that make us stronger.

As the project evolved, one conviction became increasingly clear to me:

Football rises above any ideology that does not promote unity.

That sentence eventually became the guiding principle behind Sonhadores.

A Work Inaugurated on Human Rights Day

On December 10, 2023, in celebration of International Human Rights Day, C.F. Estrela da Amadora officially inaugurated Sonhadores on the façade of the club's SAD headquarters, next to José Gomes Stadium.

Seeing the mural installed in a public space was an especially meaningful moment.

Because from that moment on, it no longer belonged to me.

It belonged to the club, to the city, and to everyone who sees themselves reflected in it.

Art as a Universal Language

This collaboration reminded me of something essential: art can speak to every world.

It can live inside a museum, transform public spaces, tell the story of a city, or become part of the identity of a football club.

When a project begins with an authentic story, the boundaries between disciplines simply disappear.

Today, Sonhadores represents much more than a monumental mural.

It symbolizes the meeting of Portuguese heritage, the tradition of azulejos, football, and a city that has chosen to embrace its diversity as one of its greatest strengths.

And that is precisely why I create: to tell stories that bring people together.

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