Not worth building houses if they don’t make good ruins is a continuous project of dozens of small latex and cement pieces containing paintings and drawings. A selection of these was exhibited for the first time in the 2021 show Glass Cabin at EGEU, a project space in Lisbon. The installation was composed of the small latex paintings hung throughout a grid along the windows of this space, formerly a store. These stamp-like images were visible from both the outside and the inside of the space, and due to the transparency of the material, light would create one image on the inside and its reverse on the outside, outlining the negative space both within an image and the physical space created for its contemplation. The work itself is temporary, as the materials oxidise, dry, thin down and slowly fall apart. Latex, being a natural material, is meant to be kept away from light, heat and harsh external conditions, meaning the exhibition of these works is a way of destroying them.

First and last photographs by Aúna Nunes.
All other photographs by Laura Caetano.

Untitled (Não vale a pena construir casas que não deem boas ruínas)
2021
oil, graphite, paper, potato, yarn and latex
22x13,5 cm

Untitled (Não vale a pena construir casas que não deem boas ruínas)
2021
oil on concrete
19x10 cm

Untitled (Não vale a pena construir casas que não deem boas ruínas)
2020
oil, graphite, paper and concrete
7x5 cm

Untitled (Não vale a pena construir casas que não deem boas ruínas)
2021
oil, indian ink, latex and concrete
19x10 cm

Untitled (Não vale a pena construir casas que não deem boas ruínas)
2021
oil, pen and paper on latex
22x13,5 cm

Untitled (Não vale a pena construir casas que não deem boas ruínas)
2021
oil and rubber on latex
22x13,5 cm