The exhibition catalogue I do not evolve, I travel accompanies the first retrospective dedicated to the artist José Escada (Lisbon, 1934–1980) presented in the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum – Modern Collection.

The publication opens with two essays. The first, written by the curator of the exhibition, Rita Fabiana, reveals the thought process underlying the show, framing the artist’s production in the context of his time and experiences and recalling his collaborations with other artists and intellectuals and his activity as a critic of art, cinema and exhibitions. The second piece, by Guilia Lamoni, analyses the question of representation of the body/bodies in Escada’s work, through the ‘theme of the embrace and its unfolding’.

In a second part, the catalogue gives voice to the artist, republishing a vast anthology of his critical output in newspapers and magazines, compiled under the title ‘Written Word’. These are followed by reproductions of his works, organised according to the core sections of the exhibition: ‘Joie de vivre’, ‘Illuminations’, ‘Metamorphoses’, ‘Our chains’, ‘From my window’. Interspersing these core sections are four texts by authors who, at the time when Escada was creating, reflected on his work: José-Augusto França, Fernando Pernes, Alfredo Margarido and Rui Mário Gonçalves (interview with José Escada), Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen.

At the end, a generously illustrated biography complements the publication, revealing and contextualising Escada’s graphic production and the works he carried out in an architectural context.