Manuel Cargaleiro, born in 1927 in Vila Velha de Ródão, is a Portuguese artist specializing in ceramics and painting. Cargaleiro was self-taught. He created earthenware tiles, Portuguese azulejos, an art form that still retains its importance in Portugal and was introduced by the Arabs to the Iberian Peninsula.
He moved to France in 1957, a country that became his home. He was influenced by École de Paris artists such as Delaunay, Ernst, Vasarely and Klee. His compositions are based on geometric modules and primary colors, suggesting movement in space.
Manuel Cargaleiro has received awards and decorations in Portugal, France and Italy. In 1995, the artist created frescoes for the Champs-Élysées Clémenceau metro station in Paris. He has also worked for the Manuel Cargaleiro museums in Castelo Branco, Seixal and Ravello. He has been honored and recognized both in France and in his native Portugal.
In 2004, the Manuel Cargaleiro Foundation-Museum was inaugurated, to which the artist donated works. This is an important center for the art of ceramics.
Cargaleiro lives and works in Paris.
