Dear Maurício,

You left us with a tremendous void a week ago today.

It was on the day we were closing the new issue on Intimacy – March 18.

There was still time to dedicate this issue to you, for which we had invited you to write on Intimacy at the start of our joint Porta 33 – Porto Santo, The School Effect project. To which you replied: ‘I have been wanting to write for over 30 years, but I never do’. Whoever met you remembers that you were a sophisticated and demanding individual. This may have been the reason why you never decided to write, because you were never quite satisfied with the outcome.

You and Cecília made history at Rua do Quebra Costas, 33, in Funchal, and more recently at Escola da Vila, in Porto Santo. You have fought all your life for a fair artistic ecosystem, providing a voice and space for a range of artists, curators, architects, students and other stakeholders in the world of art and knowledge. Throughout the 35 years of PORTA 33’s existence, you have brought us a prolific portfolio of exhibitions, conferences, artist residencies, book publications, grants and numerous other activities, which will continue to grow.

The memories never cease to come and go, shifting through a range of emotions that still stuns us at your passing. There were so many shared experiences and projects over the years.

You were always perceptive and aware, and, in a pleasant conversation around the table at the Escola da Vila, we debated the world and its troubling state of affairs these days. Our last memory of you is of a happy, generous, broad smile after a performance by the Porto Santo Folk Group at the Festa da Escola da Vila, on the occasion of the project’s kick-off.

We are left with these tender images and memories, and the immense privilege of having lived and worked with you.

We hope that Portuguese culture will honour your work and the significance of PORTA33.

Our thoughts are with Cecília, his life-long partner, but also with Carolina, Hélder and the rest of the team, who, with their strength and commitment, will carry on your battle for this immense world that is PORTA33.

Godspeed!