Across Two Centuries. Reverso [28 Years]: Since 14 November 1998

[…] affirmation, questioning and transgression were our watchwords.
To create and innovate, always. To create exuberantly without regard for taboos. [1]


Before [14 November 1998]

I met Paula Crespo in 1983, while studying at Ar.Co, where I encountered the new jewellery being practised in Portugal. Her slate and gold brooches truly impressed me. At the time, they showed me a path, a direction. Today, they metaphorically represent Paula’s work, her life, and the importance she attributes to the drawing, the project and the encounter.
Paula Crespo, Untitled, 1987. Brooches, slate, 18kt gold leaf, bronze. 7 x 7 x 0.4 cm / each
©VERITASArtAuctioneers


In 1988, she visited me while I was studying at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie, in Amsterdam, with a Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation scholarship. We went to Galerie Ra and experienced the wonder of our own ignorance, in a Portugal still so far removed from the world of contemporary jewellery then being made. We felt a mixture of joy and disappointment at being so “behind.” Yet that sense of being behind motivated us, as did the wonder of this new reality.

Paula is an artist, gallerist and curator. The position of an artist-gallerist creates tension: these roles can come at the expense of her artistic production, while her ability to devote herself fully to the commercial side of the gallery is, as a rule, limited. The most important thing is to create, not to sell. But one must sell. It is within this duality that Paula has lived her role as an artist and gallerist.

Reverso’s 28 years are extraordinary and courageous. After the end of a project in which she had been a programmer and a curator, Paula could have given up [2]. Instead, she chose to continue. Reverso was born from this gesture of persistence. The name is symptomatic: “reverso” means the other side, the opposite.


[14 November 1998] And After


Paula Crespo and Ana Isabel opened the Reverso Gallery in 1998,
with an exhibition of paintings by João Hogan and jewellery by Paula Crespo [3]


Galeria Reverso, Inaugural exhibition, João Hogan and Paula Crespo, 1998. Photograph by João Carvalho de Sousa


The book marking Reverso’s first decade opens with this sentence and an image of the inaugural exhibition: two paintings by João Hogan and three display cases featuring jewellery by Paula. The 14-year [4] partnership with Ana Isabel Rodrigues reinforced the intention to explore interdisciplinary crossovers. Ana Isabel brought previous experience of this cross-disciplinary approach, acquired from the Interior, Ana Isabel and Nasoni galleries.

Ana Isabel Rodrigues wearing Paula Crespo's ring, 2004. Photograph by Catarina Crespo


Reverso has always refused to hierarchise disciplines [5], but has found itself confronted with a market that does not integrate contemporary jewellery into the art world. Disciplinary hierarchies continue to impact the market, institutional programming, and the formation of public and private collections. The difficulty of establishing jewellery within this circuit has led Reverso to focus its programme on artists in this field. Like this book, the 28th anniversary exhibition reveals continuity, consistency, resilience and a commitment to the project.


Paula Crespo and Ana Isabel Rodrigues, 2008. Photograph by João Carvalho de Sousa


Since 1998, Reverso has showcased works by 372 artists and held 121 exhibitions, 113 of them devoted to jewellery — 74 group exhibitions and 39 solo exhibitions — in addition to 19 Window Projects and 12 conferences. In the early years (1998–2002), it exhibited mainly painting in solo shows as well as Paula’s jewellery and collaborative projects with the painters Pedro Calapez and Pedro Portugal. In its fifth year, it held the first solo jewellery exhibitions: Tissue, by Leonor Hipólito, and two untitled exhibitions by Claude Schmitz and Kaio Saito.

Three artists with distinct approaches, illustrating the kind of jewellery Reverso went on to present.


Galeria Reverso, Ent[re]idades exhibition, Vera Castro e Paula Crespo, 2002


Galeria Reverso, Marc Monzo solo exhibition, 2005. Photograph by Galeria Reverso


In 1999, Reverso presented the touring exhibition Pot-Pourri Luso, which brought together 29 Portuguese artists, curated by Marília Maria Mira [6], for the Ars Ornata Europeana symposium in Barcelona. It was the first group exhibition of contemporary jewellery from Portugal to be presented internationally, bringing together, without hierarchies, artists from different generations, mostly from the rival Lisbon schools, Ar.Co and Contacto Directo. At Reverso, it formed part of the Experimenta Design biennial, giving the gallery a prominent role, attracting a broader audience, and connecting with participating artists.


Galeria Reverso, Opening, Photograph by Galeria Reverso


Noord Oost Zuid West (2001), curated by Lous Martin, from the Netherlands, marked the start of a move toward internationalisation, which continued with group exhibitions from Sweden (2005), the Czech Republic (2008), and Estonia (2015). With increasing international mobility and globalisation, it gradually stopped making sense to present artists by nationality, as had been the norm in previous decades.

Paula’s eclectic choices reflect the warm, empathetic relationships she builds with artists who approach the gallery or whom she invites to exhibit. She places her trust in the synchronicities and elective affinities she develops, as was the case with Hipólito and Schmitz, with whom she continues to work.
Leonor Hipólito, Even the Trees Are Dreams exhibition project, 2013. Tout est sur la table, 2011. 20.5 x 15 x 2 cm. Photography by Arne Kaiser
Claude Schmitz, Fraction solo exhibition, Red Leaves, 2012. Photograph by the artist


She collaborates internationally with the artists including Marc Monzó, Castello Hansen, Andrea Wagner, Birgit Laken, Beppe Kessler, Ela Bauer, Sylvia Blickman and Susanne Hesser, as well, in Portugal, with Manuel Vilhena, Hipólito and Ana Albuquerque, among many others. Equally close are the painters Pedro Calapez and Pedro Portugal, the architects Manuel Graça Dias, Margarida Grácio Nunes, José Charters Monteiro, and Fernando Sanches Salvador, with whom she developed several projects [7], and the Estonian artists associated with Kadri Mälk and the õhuloss group, including Tanel Veenre, whose work she exhibits more regularly. She also held the first solo exhibitions of artists whose careers would go on to flourish, such as Patrícia Domingues. She admires and exhibits Ruudt Peters, Herman Hermsen, Mirjam Hiller, Sophie Hanagarth, Lin Cheung, Caroline Broadhead and Daniel Kruger, among others. She is demanding about the project, execution and outcome.

Patrícia Domingues, Fragmentar Matéria exhibition, 2015. Many Deliberated. Photograph by Manuel Ocaña


õhuloss exhibition opening, 2015. Tanel Veenre, Kadri Maelk, Piret Hirv, Cristina Filipe and Villu Plink. Photograph by Galeria Reverso
Paula Crespo, Even the Trees Are Dreams exhibition project, 2013. Quadrado Vermelho, 11.5 x 8.5 x 0.7 cm. Photograph by the artist


As part of its 10th anniversary celebrations, Reverso challenged artists to exhibit in pairs. It sought out affinities or encouraged opposition and complementarity, in a curatorial exercise that surprised both the public and the artists themselves. It also invited the members of PIN to work on a specific theme across a series of 10 exhibitions. Even the Trees Are Dreams [8], dedicated to Ana Isabel, celebrated the gallery’s 15th anniversary by bringing together artists working in painting, drawing and jewellery; for its 25th anniversary, Paula chose four colours as the theme and invited Valeria Accornero as co-curator. Her curatorial projects prioritise the creative process, encourage the production of new work and take the risk of exhibiting it. In the Window Project, she challenges artists to create site-specific interventions for the right-hand display window on the gallery’s façade.
Beatriz Horta Correia, Even the Trees Are Dreams exhibition project, 2013. Natura, 20 x 42 cm. Photograph by Miguel Gaspar


Pedro Calapez, Even the Trees Are Dreams exhibition project, 2013. Entreramos 02, 27 x 27 cm. Photograph by the artist
Inês Nunes, Even the Trees Are Dreams exhibition project, 2013. Força, 14.5 x 11.5 x 6.5 cm. Photograph by the artist


But that is not all. Her installation-based approach led her to redesign the gallery’s interior space on several occasions. The first took place for the gallery’s 10th anniversary celebrations, with two modules that intersected the room from the display windows. A large table shaped like the number 10 brought the works closer to the body, allowing them to be observed, touched and experienced from different perspectives. The displacement of jewellery from display cases to tables and walls, now commonplace, marked the first decade of the 21st century. Since then, she has consistently sought out different approaches, such as õhuloss (2015), who installed a large photography of a landscape, with the works presented against it; the same year, in Snapshot, the public were invited to wear the pieces on display and be photographed in situ, transforming the gallery into a living studio. Paula approaches the process of setting up an exhibition with genuine adrenaline and passion. Although the space retains its original configuration, it has allowed for multiple variations, including the three large display windows facing Rua da Esperança.



Reverso 10 years, 2008. Photograph by Galeria Reverso


Snapshot exhibition, Edu Tarin, 2015. Photography by Galeria Reverso


Reverso has an educational dimension. Many recent graduates seek out Reverso for work placements, both in the gallery and in its workshop, finding not only a place to work but a space for inspiration and learning. Catarina Silva and Ana Margarida Carvalho are among the artists who undertook internships there at the start of their careers. For several years, Paula ran a small workshop for beginners, where she led the A Jóia ao Alcance da Mão [The jewel within reach]. Both activities kept the gallery financial sustainable. Today, only the internships remain.


Manuel Vilhena, Miss Amelia solo exhibition and lecture, 2014. Photograph by Galeria Reverso


Sophie Hanagarth, A Ferro e Fogo solo exhibition, 2016. Carolina Quintela, Marília Maria Mira and Catarina Silva at Galeria Reverso window. Photograph by Galeria Reverso


Over the years, Paula has persevered, maintaining a consistent programme and relationships with clients and collectors – private and institutional – in Portugal and beyond. She challenges artists and educates, guiding the gaze of her audience. Unafraid to overcome the barriers she faces, she has moved from one century into the next, crossing borders, conquering unfamiliar territories and intelligently discovering the most fertile possibilities they had to offer. She loses battles but does not give up. Her publications fulfil an important function: preserving and documenting the gallery’s history and the artists who have been part of it. The recent project Trajectories, which invited several artists to speak about their work, is proof of this. Reverso has been forging a path that makes an important contribution to the history of contemporary art, often in the face of adversity, seeking new ways of presenting it, discussing it and bringing it to the public. It is this persistence that best defines its trajectory: to continue blazing trails for its artists and for those who do not yet know contemporary jewellery.


Typhaine le Monnier, Window Project, Exercício n.º 11 – Extensão para um Círculo, 2018. Photograph by the artist


Ruudt Peters, solo exhibition for Cold Sweat Lisbon Biennial, 2021. Photograph by Galeria Reverso


Why should Reverso continue? Art only endures through perseverance. It is essential not to give up on promoting jewellery and integrating it into the contemporary art market. It is important to rethink in its programme, the interdisciplinary nature of its initial vision, in order to once again feature other disciplines based on their relevance, where there are affinities that help to better understand the history of art. We must not isolate audiences, nor artists, but foster encounters – as indicated by the golden lines drawn on the slate squares of Paula Crespo’s brooches, our encounter in Amsterdam and, later, her presence, in the cold landscape in front of the Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich.


Paula Crespo, Munich, 2013. Photograph by Cristina Filipe




Notes:
[1] Paula Crespo in Cristina Filipe, Contemporary Jewellery in Portugal. From the Avant-Garde of the 1960s to the Early 21st Century, Lisbon: Author, CML/MUDE – Design Museum; Stuttgart: arnoldsche Art Publishers, 2019, pp. 145–146.

[2] Before opening Reverso, Paula Crespo was part of the team at the Artefacto 3 gallery/workshop, where she played a significant role as a programmer. There, she developed strategies to attract a contemporary art audience. "Artefacto 3 was a commercial gallery that lived off the sales it made. No programming was possible if there were no sales. So, it was necessary to expand the gallery´s sphere of action to attract a larger audience. We reached a point where we needed to broaden the audience, which had been somewhat limited, and just like today, was difficult to renew." Paula Crespo, interview by Cristina Filipe, 2012, in Cristina Filipe, Contemporary Jewellery in Portugal. From the Avant-Garde of the 1960s to the Early 21st Century, Lisbon: Author, CML/MUDE – Design Museum; Stuttgart: arnoldsche Art Publishers, 2019, p. 177.

[3] Paula Crespo et al., reverso 1998–2008, Lisbon: Reverso Gallery, 2008, p. 6.

[4] Ana Isabel Rodrigues died in 2012.

[5] Paula Crespo, ‘Reverso Revisited’, reverso 2009.2013, Lisbon: Reverso Gallery. 2013, pp. 22–23 and ‘Reverso 20 Years’, reverso 2014.2018, Lisbon: Reverso Gallery, 2018, pp. 15–16; Manuel Vilhena, ‘con.tem.po.ra.ry jew.el.lery (from the latin contemporaneus, -a, -um), (from the french joaiellerie),’ reverso 2014.2018, Lisbon: Reverso Gallery, 2018, pp. 6–7.

[6] Tiago Neves assisted with the curatorial project.

[7] She invited Pedro Calapez and Pedro Portugal (2000), and Pedro Proença (2020), to design jewellery and other types of objects, following the exhibition project Ilegítimos: Joias Portuguesas Contemporâneas, for which she was mentor and curator at Artefacto 3 in 1994. For the Waterproof project, she invited the architects Manuel Graça Dias, Margarida Grácio Nunes, José Charters Monteiro and Fernando Sanches Salvador (2002) to design water jugs. An exception is the Elipse Prima project, with the architect Eduardo Trigo de Sousa and the sculptor Maria Felizol, whose work was not the result of a Reverso project.

[8] From the poem Humus, by Raul Brandão.

 

About the author

Dr. Cristina Filipe (Lisbon, 1965) lives and works in Lisbon. She holds a PhD in Heritage Studies from the School of Arts of the Universidade Católica Portuguesa (2018), and she is a researcher at the Centre for Research in Science and Technology of the Arts (CITAR). She has a Master’s degree in Arts and Design from the Surrey Institute of Art & Design (2001) and studied jewellery at Ar.Co — Centro de Arte e Comunicação Visual, the Gerrit Rietveld Academie and the Royal College of Art.

She taught jewellery at Ar.Co between 1989 and 2015, directing its Jewellery Department from 2004 to 2015, and has since been a guest artist and lecturer at several international institutions. She received the Susan Beech Mid-Career Artist Grant from the Art Jewelry Forum (2017) for the book Contemporary Jewellery in Portugal. From the Avant-Garde of the 1960s to the Early 21st Century (2019), whose English edition is distributed by Arnoldsche Art Publishers.

Since 2005, she has worked as an independent curator and researcher. She founded and chaired PIN  — Associação Portuguesa de Joalharia Contemporânea (2004–2023), created and was General Curator of the 1st Lisbon Contemporary Jewellery Biennial — Cold Sweat (2021), is the author of numerous articles and essays, editorial and scientific coordinator of the book Cold Sweat (2022), and creator and scientific coordinator of INCM’s book Collection J (2023).

In 2026, she was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to undertake a Visiting Scholar fellowship in curatorial studies at the Museum of Arts and Design (MAD) in New York in 2027.