CONTOURS OF REALITY AND MEMORY The recent exhibition of paintings by Nikias Skapinakis at the CCB once again drew attention to the work of one of the most interesting artists of the second half of the 20th century in Portugal. Nikias went through several very distinct stages, from figuration, to landscapes of an expressionist and metaphysical lyricism at the beginning of his journey, to what he considers parafiguration, a fragmented language and abstract with strong resonances of reality, passing through portraits from the 50s and 60s and evolving into a new figuration. The painter has continued his search for the archetype of an essential linear and chromatic purification in his series of clay-colored paintings. from the 90s, synthesizing everyday form and objects. Earthy colors are enlivened by oranges and fiery reds in this screen-printed triptych with the title «Contornos», from 1991, which joins the fragmentation, movement, real and mythical landscape, in metamorphosis, space of sensations and magical memories.