Mariana Santos, known as Mariana, a Miserável, is a Porto-based illustrator and painter whose work unfolds slowly—each brushstroke on paper is deliberate, vibrant, and filled with character. She stands out as one of Portugal’s most expressive artists, especially in tile illustration.

I was invited to document a mural painting process via a short video and also to create a series of portraits for press use. For the video, we embraced the concept of slow creation—focusing on process over product. We only used ambient sound so viewers could feel they were in the studio, hearing brush on tile, quiet pauses, and the subtle rhythm of making.

For the portraits, I drew inspiration from Mariana’s visual style. I wanted them to feel more like film stills than digital headshots—soft hues that still carry emotional weight, evident textures, and compositions that echo her handmade work. The result is a visual cohesion between artist and art, one that speaks softly yet powerfully to her creative world.