About the artist

Mario Henrique is a contemporary painter based in Cascais, Portugal.

Graduated in Design from Lisbon’s University of Fine Arts, he started his career in online marketing and web development agencies. As a creative director, he recruited and led teams in Portugal, Spain and Brazil. A decade later, he would shift his focus to contemporary painting, which had always been a parallel interest.

A prolific portraitist, Mario is fascinated by the unpredictability of the human behaviour: the brief glances, the impermanence of facial expressions, the sudden movements.

Making use of uncommon and “rough” materials, like cardboards, reversed canvases and hardware tools, he paints abruptly and spontaneously. His approach relies on drippings, splashes and paint throws, so that the physicality of the painting process is transparent in the final piece.

Listed in various private collections across Europe, America and Asia, he has exhibited in galleries both locally and abroad, and was awarded an Honourable Mention for his participation in the Brasília Biennial of Contemporary Arts 2016. He was also featured in Saatchi Art’s Inside The Studio and is currently represented by a number of prestigious international galleries.

Mario owns a studio/gallery at the Marina, in Cascais (Portugal), where some of his paintings are publicly exhibited.

I try to be fast and spontaneous when I’m painting - that process should be reflected in the final piece. The observer should be able to infer the physicality of the painting process when looking at the brush strokes and paint drippings.

When I throw paint, I can do it with some premeditation - but I can never really predict where the paint will actually fall on the canvas. So, my approach to painting is - in part - based on chance, on small random accidents; it doesn’t rely exclusively on my persistence or my technique.

That’s why I don’t feel completely responsible for my paintings - in the sense that, although I can answer for my initial intentions, the final result is always something that I could never anticipate, and something that’s out of my absolute control.

- Mario Henrique

Selected exhibitions

  • Solo

    • 2023 Selected works | ArtCatto at Conrad Hotel, Quinta do Lago, Portugal.
    • 2021 Selected works | ArtCatto at Hotel D. Filipa, Vale do Lobo, Portugal.
    • 2020 Embrasser du regard | Galerie des Sens, Caen, France.
    • 2019 Selected works | Corno Gallery, Montreal, Canada.
    • 2019 Apparentia | Flores do Cabo, Sintra, Portugal.
    • 2018 Somnium | Art Village Gallery, Memphis, TN, USA.
    • 2017 Vultus | Grace Denker Gallery, Hamburg, Germany.
    • 2016 Icon | Casino Lisboa Art Gallery, Lisbon, Portugal.
    • 2016 Impulsus | Verney Gallery, Oeiras, Portugal.

  • Group

    • 2023 Selected works | FN Art Gallery, San Jose, Costa Rica.
    • 2023 Pedaços De Um Céu Sonhado | Welcome To Art, Lisbon, Portugal.
    • 2022 Selected works | Galerie Alaux, Valencia, Spain.
    • 2022 Selected works | Tilsitt Gallery, Porto, Portugal.
    • 2021 Selected works | ArtCatto, Loulé, Portugal.
    • 2021 NFT BAZL Dubai | JW Marriott Marquis, Dubai, UAE.
    • 2021 NFT BAZL Miami | Temple Gallery, Miami, FL, USA.
    • 2019 Bloom: Color, Caress & Seduction | Bill Lowe Gallery, Atlanta, GA, USA.
    • 2019 Rhapsody in Blue | Bill Lowe Gallery at IBM Tower, Atlanta, GA, USA.
    • 2018 Bill Lowe Gallery at The Estate | Atlanta, GA, USA.
    • 2017 No Borders: Another Page | Bill Lowe Gallery, Atlanta, GA, USA.
    • 2016 Biennial of Arts | Pontão do Lago Sul, Brasilia, Brasil.