Artisan of Porto Santo turns marine garbage into art

“ A wood we collected on the beach is part of a memory. People [previously] gathered the woods to enjoy in their homes, because there were no trees in Porto Santo, and then they picked up the woods that went to shore and made a chair or a table, or a window ", told the agency Lusa.

Vera Menezes, 46 years old, graphic designer of formation, seeks to continue this tradition, but otherwise, creating decorative objects, adornments and pieces of art, such as boats, fish, lamps, but also necklaces and bracelets.

“ The pieces vary according to what I find and I try to enjoy the wood in its essence, I do not like to transform it. Deep down, just give it a touch”, he explained.

The Shop of the Prophet, located in Vila Baleira, the main urban center of the island, opened in 2018 and, in the beginning, the sites did not appreciate the name, due to the pejorative connotation of the term.

The Porto-Santenses have been nicknamed “prophets” since the 16th century, when a man named Ferdinand Nunes and his niece, Filipa Nunes, became prophets in 1533, with a large part of the population believing them. The two were then arrested and sent to Évora, where they were judged and sentenced to remain on the staircase of the See with a sign that said “Prophet of Porto Santo”.

Using several types of marine garbage, mainly plastics, Vera Menezes, who is a natural and resident in Porto Santo, created a sculpture that symbolizes the old prophet and placed her on the sidewalk, outside his small shop, where the main customers are Madeirans.

“What I like best to see in the people who arrive here is the memory they have of Porto Santo”, he confessed, explaining that much of the pieces for sale reflects memories and stories lived by Madeirans on summer vacation over the years, such as donkey rides, the taste of licks, the romantic image of windmills.

They also find seashell necklaces, watercolors, magnet colored laps, ceramic pieces, table games, beach sand soaps and dredge sap, nightgowns with emblematic images of the island.

On the other hand, foreigners seek pieces created from marine waste, and plastics and glass collected on the beach are also part of the collective memory of the population.

“ People collected everything that led to the coast and could be useful,” said Vera Menezes, pointing out glass bottles, which were used to store olive oil or vinegar.

The glass and plastic collected originate from various points in the world — Argentina, the Caribbean, Morocco — and are also increasingly a “new waste”, with labels that point to expiration dates that have not expired.

“ These things didn't show up 10 years ago, 15 fifteen years ago, or as a child, when I was going with my father. What was before were much older things”, he said.

The Shop of the Prophet is also a showcase and a point of sale for the work of other local artists and craftsmen, including the sisters Maria Amelia and Maria Otília Melim, from 95 and 81 years old, the latest manufacturers of palm hats, a genre of Panama that is distinguished by its elegance and malleability and whose beginning of remote production at the end of the 19th century, after the introduction of palm trees on the island.

The palm hat is an icon of Porto Santo and Vera Menezes seized manufacturing them with the sisters Melim, but admits that it will take many years to improve the technique.

“To make a hat, the whole process, until ironing, which is the last step, is four days of work,” he said, indicating that for each unit it takes eight meters of braid and a lot of dexterity in the hands.

“ They took an hour and twenty minutes to make one meter of braid, I take twice as long”, he recognized.

Vera Menezes explained that the palm tree is the “eye of the palm tree”, that is, the new leaf, still closed, so more clear and delicate, and, after harvesting, it must still dry in the sun for 15 days.

“Most of Madeira’s families, if I’m not mistaken, have a palm hat from Porto Santo and every year they want to buy a new one, or a different model, to renew,” he said, recalling that the profit of the sale is an extra one for the two artisans, recently honored by the Regional Government, through the Wine Institute, Embroidery and Madeira Crafts (IVBAM).

Although palm picking is now prohibited, due to the destruction of palm trees caused by a beetle, there is a ‘stock’ to ensure the production of hats, and Vera Menezes, an IVBAM certified artisan, also uses it in the manufacture of suitcases, earrings, necklaces and other artifacts.