"In front of the Peace Museum in Vilar Formoso, each of us started a painting alluding to the life of Aristides de Sousa Mendes and, on Sunday, we will finish the painting in front of the house of the 'fearless consul' in Cabanas de Viriato", said Aires Santos.

Speaking to the Lusa agency, this painter born in the municipality of Nelas said that for the project "From the Peace border to the Passal House" he invited António Dias and Nelson Santos, "the usual companions, who are up for all painting challenges".

"The 25th of April started with culture, through music as a password for the revolution, and I thought that the best way to celebrate the 50 years of Freedom would also be through art", justified Aires Santos.

And, for that, "there is nothing better than celebrating the life and honouring the memory of Aristides de Sousa Mendes, who allowed freedom to so many refugees who arrived in Portugal through Vilar Formoso", a municipality of Almeida, in the district of Guarda.

Thus, on the 20th of April, in front of the Peace Museum, they gave the first brushstrokes on the blank canvas and also started to paint "small wooden boards, rectangular, 12x36 centimetres", which have "an enormous symbolism".

"They represent the bed, or the bunk bed, where they slept and also the train carriages and, then, each of us painted personal objects, such as a clock, shoes, a razor blade, glasses, something they carried", he explained.

After Vilar Formoso, the painters stopped at locations in the district of Viseu, "because unfortunately time is short and the goal was to finish the journey before the inauguration of the House-Museum" of Aristides de Sousa Mendes, scheduled for the 19th of July.

This is because they did not want to "overshadow" the inauguration and, as they are painters "out of love and dedication", since they have another profession, they are forced to "coordinate their time very well", ending up saving their free days for projects related to painting.

Thus, they marked their presence in Mangualde on the Labour Day holiday, on the 1st of May, and on the 4th they split up between Canas de Senhorim, in the morning, and, in the afternoon, in Lapa do Lobo, both parishes in the municipality of Nelas.

On Sunday, they will close the route in Cabanas de Viriato, Carregal do Sal, with a scheduled departure, "in an old car, from the era", at 10:30 am, from the Oliveirinha train station, about five kilometres from the parish council headquarters, where they will set up to paint.

"In the locations where we were, we wore clothes from that time and tried to recreate the experiences even in the simple and humble meals that we had in the community, from whom we heard stories of refugees", he said.

Aires Santos said that they heard "descendants of people who helped refugees in various ways, in welcoming them with water and bread, which was very famous, or even a soup", which revealed to be "an incredible experience" to realise the project.

At the end of the day, he said, they received from the local mayors, who "joined the project in an incredible way", a "cloth bag, with the provisions for the trip, as was used at the time".

In Aires Santos' opinion, "the presence of all the mayors on Sunday, at the end of the painting, also has an enormous significance, because it is a route that the refugees took and which ends up connecting the communities".

"As is the case of Cabanas de Viriato and Vilar Formoso, which will become even more united, because those who visit the Peace Museum will want to see the House-Museum of Aristides de Sousa Mendes and vice versa. I think it is good to preserve and tell the story", he defended.

The paintings, as well as "some of the boards", said Aires Santos, will then be on display until the end of May, at the headquarters of the Parish Council of Cabanas de Viriato, located in front of the Passal House.

Leia Também: 'Living Paintings by Caravaggio' return to Lisbon in May (Portuguese version)