New sculpture in Cerveira celebrates the Camino de Santiago

A new sculpture has been installed in Vila Nova de Cerveira, reinforcing the town’s connection to the Camino de Santiago. The piece is titled Per Agros ad Stellas (Through the Fields to the Stars) and is signed by visual artist Beatriz Manteigas.

The work is part of the intermunicipal cultural project “Caminho da Arte nos Caminhos de Santiago” (Art Route on the Caminos de Santiago), formalised in 2023 through a protocol signed by Vila Nova de Cerveira Municipality and other participating councils. The plan foresees 60 contemporary art installations along the 261 kilometres from Porto Cathedral to Santiago de Compostela Cathedral. The initiative is promoted by Lionesa – Association for Art, Culture and Tourism, in collaboration with the Regional Directorate of Culture of the North, Porto and North Tourism, and the municipalities along the Coastal Camino, with the ambition of creating what its organisers describe as “the largest art road in the world.”

Placed in Jaime Isidoro Square, on Rua Queiróz Ribeiro, the sculpture was carved from Mondim granite and includes an educational component of lichen inoculation: local youths will take part in applying these organisms to the stone to accelerate its natural integration into the public space. The inspiration comes from the etymology of the words pilgrim (one who walks through the fields) and Compostela (field of stars). The creation invites reflection on the relationship between time, space and subject, highlighting the uniqueness of each pilgrimage experience.

The author, Beatriz Manteigas, holds a PhD in Drawing from the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Lisbon, where she teaches. She has exhibited regularly since 2009 in Portugal and abroad, with works included in several public and private collections. In 2016, she co-founded the Quinta das Relvas Association, dedicated to non-formal education in Art and Ecology.