Católica awards an Honorary Doctorate to Rui Chafes

Universidade Católica Portuguesa awarded the degree of Doctor Honoris Causa to Rui Chafes, a Portuguese sculptor of national and international renown, on February 1.

Rui Chafes' work is characterised by his search to integrate his sculptures directly into nature or into concrete architectural situations and, above all, by his use of iron, almost always painted a dull black, which is one of the first singularities of his authorial mark.

In 1995, Rui Chafes represented Portugal, together with José Pedro Croft and Pedro Cabrita Reis, at the 46th Venice Biennale and in 2004 at the 26th São Paulo Biennale, with a joint project with Vera Mantero. In 2013, he was one of the international artists invited to exhibit at the Pavilion of the Republic of Cuba at the 55th Venice Biennale. He has held solo exhibitions in galleries and museums in Portugal and various countries and his work is represented in several institutional and private collections.

Throughout his career he has received several honours, including the Pessoa Prize (2015) awarded by the weekly newspaper Expresso; the Gran Premio A.E.C.A. for the best work at ARCO, Madrid (2012); the Cidade de Gaia National Prize (2007); the Robert-Jacobsen Sculpture Prize, awarded by the Stiftung Würth in Germany (2004); and the Latin Union Plastic Arts Prize (1996).

The honorary title was awarded to the artist on February 1 at a ceremony held as part of the National Day of the Universidade Católica Portuguesa. At this Academic Session, Helen Alford was also awarded an honorary doctorate for her research into the impact of ethics and Christian social thought in the fields of management, sustainability and artificial intelligence.

The event also featured the imposition of insignia and the awarding of doctoral diplomas to those who obtained their degree in 2023. UCP's National Day is celebrated on the first Sunday of February, this year on February 4, with the solemn session have taken place on February 1.