Museums and Palaces

The Nadir Afonso Museum of Contemporary Art's mission is to promote and disseminate the work of one of the greatest names in contemporary painting and architecture in Portugal.

Born in Chaves, Nadir Afonso was a Portuguese architect, painter and thinker. He worked with Oscar Niemeyer and Le Corbusier. He was one of the pioneers of kinetic art (art that explores visual effects through optical illusion) along with Fernand Léger and Vasarely, among others.

The building, headquarters of the Nadir Afonso Foundation, is a project by the architect Álvaro de Siza Vieira, as well as the Nadir Afonso Arts Centre (Centro de Artes Nadir Afonso) in Boticas, which was distinguished with the international awards The International Architecture Awards(2009) and The Green Good Design Awards(2010). It is the headquarters of the foundation.