Photographer Pedro Noel da Luz’s exhibition is on show at the Galeria Arco in Faro until August 22.

Yesterday marked the beginning of Pedro Noel da Luz’s photography exhibition, “Xávega,” at the Galeria Arco in Faro. Captured by the artist on Lagos’ Meia Praia beach in 2017, the photographs portray the art of xávega, a type of ancestral fishing carried out by fishermen and locals.

For the photographer, this art “consists of an artisanal fishing system on the verge of extinction that is still practised in Meia Praia”.

“For years, fishermen have pulled nets on this beach using just the strength of their arms, and it is still today a way of life for some fishermen as well as an attraction for tourists”, explains Pedro Noel da Luz.

Born in Portimão but currently residing in Lagos, the photographer has exhibited several individual and collective shows recognised nationally and internationally since 2004 and boasts several awards under his belt.

Some of his highlights include participating in the “See Me Take Over” event in Times Square, New York, in 2014 and the “Fifth Annual Exposure Award” at the Museum of Louvre in Paris in 2015. He also received a “Merit” award at the FEP’s (European Federation of Professional Photographers) 2022 edition of the “European Professional Photographer of the Year Awards” in the Reportage/Photojournalism category.

The exhibition, which is free of entry, is on display at the Galeria Arco, home to the ALFA (Associação Livre de Fotógrafos do Algarve), and can be visited on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 17h30 to 20h30 until August 22.

ALFA is a non-profit organisation based at Galeria Arco in Faro that was created to boost, promote, and disseminate photography and other related forms of artistic expression throughout the Algarve.

It also encourages teaching the art of photography, meetings and coexistence through training activities, thematic workshops, photographic tours and collective and individual exhibitions.