b. 1982 in Cabinda, Angola; currently lives and works in Lisbonne, Portugal
Cristiano Mangovo earned his Degree in Fine Art from the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo with additional training in urban scenography and performance. Mangovo’s paintings, sculptures, installations, and performances are inspired by daily urban life and often appeal to the need to protect weaker people from the stronger, calling for more balanced societies with improved conditions for all. Through his paintings and collages over the years, Mangovo has developed various styles and symbolisms, but always with a distinct surrealist approach. Mangovo received early recognition for his work, building up to some fifty exhibitions and performances with his first post-graduate solo exhibition in 2013 by the Foundation Art and Culture in Luanda, which ended up touring to Art BAI that year. In 2014, he was awarded the Mirella Antognoli Argelá Prize by the Italian Embassy and Alliance Française as well as the prestigious Angolan ENSA Art prize, which sent him into Cité Internationale des Arts residency resulting in a solo exhibition in Paris. Since then, he has exhibited internationally in solo and group exhibitions in Portugal, France, Italy, Switzerland, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Democratic Republic of Congo, Belgium, the Netherlands and the United States.
