Jean Painlevé (1902-1989) was one of the most peculiar figures in 20th century French culture. A pioneer documentary filmmaker and photographer of animal life and, in particular, underwater fauna, Painlevé managed to insert himself into the avant-garde artistic circuits of the first half of that century through the aesthetic and experimental boldness of his films and images. Driven by the firm conviction that “science is fiction”, Painlevé's film productions are the result of the contrast between the pedagogical commitment with which he documented the behaviour of marine organisms and the desire to use creative filming and editing techniques that brought them close to some of the surrealist proposals of the time. Curated by Ampersand, this will be Jean Painlevé's first exhibition in Portugal and will bring together a set of films, photographs, and objects that will allow us to map the different declinations of this author's unique universe.

Ampersand – a program looking at artistic enterprise, including but not limited to exhibitions – was founded by Alice Dusapin and Martin Laborde in Lisbon in 2017. This exhibition is curated by Alice Dusapin, Martin Laborde and Baptiste Pinteaux.