Our most recent collectors’ visit brought us to the Lisbon studio of Portuguese artist Diogo Potes, for a morning of direct exchange and in-depth conversation around practice, transition, and materiality.

We were welcomed personally by the artist, who guided us through his workspace and body of work. The encounter unfolded as an open dialogue rather than a formal presentation, a format that allowed collectors to understand not only the works themselves, but the trajectory behind them.

Originally trained and established as a graphic designer, Diogo Potes has been progressively shifting his focus toward his artistic practice. A significant part of our conversation centered on this transition: how it unfolded, what prompted it, and how he has been consciously repositioning himself within a contemporary art context. He spoke about moving from commissioned design work - structured, client-oriented, and functional - towards a more autonomous and exploratory practice.

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This shift is visible not only in subject matter but in process. In the studio, he walked us through the techniques he currently employs, emphasizing experimentation and physical engagement with materials. Oil sticks play a central role in his work, allowing him to build dense surfaces and layered compositions. He demonstrated how he applies, removes, and reworks pigment, highlighting the importance of texture, even when working on canvas. For Potes, the surface is never neutral; it carries the memory of gestures, pressure, and time.

Collectors had the opportunity to closely observe works in progress, gaining insight into how compositions evolve. We discussed scale, repetition, figuration, abstraction, and how his visual language - informed by his background in graphic design - is being reinterpreted through a more tactile and painterly approach.

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A substantial part of the visit was dedicated to his latest exhibition at LUX in Lisbon, where he elaborated on the conceptual framework behind the show. He explained how the works were conceived in relation to one another, how the exhibition space informed decisions, and how he sees this moment as part of a broader consolidation of his artistic identity.

What distinguished this visit was the openness of the exchange. Collectors were able to ask direct and nuanced questions about authorship, positioning, market dynamics, and the challenges of transitioning disciplines. The studio setting, intimate and informal, created the right conditions for transparency.

As with all our studio visits, the value lay not only in seeing the works, but in understanding the evolution of a practice in real time. In Diogo Potes’ case, we witnessed an artist navigating a deliberate shift, from design to a more fully realized artistic language, grounded in material exploration, texture, and an increasingly defined conceptual framework.

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