The work is inspired by a photograph by photojournalist Alfredo Cunha, who challenged Vhils to create it, indicated the Municipality of Castelo de Vide.

The concrete sculpture, measuring "2.5 by 2.5 metres", with an investment of over 47 thousand euros, will be inaugurated in Parque 25 de Abril, next to the bust of Salgueiro Maia and the well-known chaimite V200, at 3:15 pm, on the day that marks the 50th anniversary of the Carnation Revolution, said the local authority. 

Contacted today by the Lusa agency, the mayor, António Pita, considered that Vhils' work, from an artistic point of view, "enhances" the 25th of April commemorations through art.

"Castelo de Vide is even more proud to have this artistic approach. We already had the memory of Salgueiro Maia, but with an artist of this world renown, it is obviously a commitment to culture and art", he added.

In a note sent to Lusa, the municipality also stressed that this is a work of "inestimable value" for the territory, increasing its attractiveness.

"The goal is to express the unique vision of the two artists (Alfredo Cunha and Vhils) through a dialogue that transcends the boundaries of time, highlighting the importance of preserving and reinterpreting the visual narratives that shaped Portuguese identity", reads the document.

Vhils' approach transports Alfredo Cunha's photographic work to the present and, for the municipality, generates "a timeless piece" that becomes "a point of reference" in the landscape of that Alentejo village.

"Through artistic expression and photography, the project aims to establish an environment conducive to reflection and the celebration of freedom, encouraging the public to immerse themselves in the historical narrative and the essence of the April Revolution", stressed the local authority.

On 1 July 2021, the Casa da Cidadania Salgueiro Maia was also inaugurated in that Alentejo village by the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, resulting from an investment of three million euros.

The space houses several pieces by Salgueiro Maia, including the well-known megaphone with which, on 25 April 1974, in Largo do Carmo, the then captain ordered Marcello Caetano to surrender.

The museum space also exhibits the uniform and the military 'quico' he wore that day, among other uniforms, insignia, pennants, banners and standards, badges, diplomas and commendations, military documents and school records belonging to Salgueiro Maia.

An area with posters and photographs and a collection of miniature tanks, the military's speciality as a cavalry officer and his great professional passion, are other features.

In the Carnation Revolution, Fernando Salgueiro Maia (1944-1992) was the commander of the military column of the Escola Prática de Cavalaria (EPC), in Santarém, which occupied the Praça do Comércio and surrounded the Quartel do Carmo, in Lisbon, leading to the surrender of the then President of the Council, Marcello Caetano, and the definitive fall of the dictatorship of the Estado Novo.

A native of Castelo de Vide, the April captain expressed two wishes in his will, which were fulfilled: to be buried in that village, in a shallow grave, and to leave his estate to the municipality so that it could be musealised.

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