It is no secret that the Algarve is a popular tourist destination. The region is a beautiful place to visit, particularly in the summer. However, the Algarve is more than just beaches and resorts. This region of Portugal is also home to a variety of art galleries and museums.

The region is a popular tourist destination year-round, especially during the summer months when temperatures are high and there are plenty of beaches to relax at. However, there are plenty of things to do during the winter months as well. In fact, there are several museums and art galleries that are open year-round.

One of the most popular galleries is the open-air art gallery in Estômbar, at Quinta dos Vales. This Wine Estate combines wine and art in a close relationship, where stunning sculptures can be enjoyed together with high quality award-winning wines.

The artwork and sculptures featured at this gallery are truly incredible; it will be a great addition to your trip to the Algarve.

Open-air Art Gallery in the Algarve sun

Visitors can stroll through the art gallery that expands all over the Estate’s gardens and take in the beauty of each piece. A visit to this gallery is a great way to spend an afternoon. In several garden locations you will find an exhibition of well over a hundred pieces in different styles, materials and sizes.

In one of the projects available in the gallery, “ Dance of the Bears”, the artist, Karl Heinz Stock, created with his team of craftsmen mostly similar looking, but still unique sculptures of unique creatures and invited 26 talented painters and mosaic artists from several  countries with different nationalities and backgrounds to make their own interpretation of the  theme “Evolution”. This was the only general guideline, besides this the artists were free in their artistic expression. The transformation of two-dimensional paintings and mosaics into three-dimensional sculpture-paintings was an exciting new experience for all participants.

Most of the art pieces were already part of wandering exhibitions, in display across Europe.

Another unique project that inspired the artists involved was to go even one step further with the creation of the “Passion” project, in an addition to a “normal” wandering sculpture exhibition inspired by the idea of elephants climbing trees. If you are looking around, you will still find several elephants occupying trees! The original elephant tree sculpture can today be found in Germany.

Quinta dos Vales

Like wine, art is developed with heart, care and precision. As art and wine have always formed a close symbiosis it was obvious for them that these cultural aspects had to be brought together. Karl Heinz Stock, owner and developer of Quinta dos Vales, has long been an adventurous entrepreneur but as a side interest always been active in sculpturing. He found the farm to be a perfect combination for exhibiting his extraordinary and sometimes provoking art pieces, while simultaneously creating attention for his wine venture.

You can visit the Estate all year-round and learn all about the art available for sale in their website.

This article was originally published in: Portugal Resident