Tongues of Fire

Concept and Process

Tongues of Fire is a solo exhibition by artist Pedro Valdez Cardoso, presented at Andar de Baixo. For this project, Surpresa Studio was invited to develop the exhibition's visual identity and communication materials - a system that reflects the artist's universe, narratives, and color palette.

The design process was driven by the duality found within the exhibition itself: a dialogue between print and digital, retro and contemporary. Many of Valdez Cardoso's works are hand-sewn pieces, and this material gesture became a key reference point. The idea of the thread - continuous, connecting, and delicate - informed the graphic language, leading to compositions made entirely with inline strokes, avoiding filled shapes or solid lettering.

The result is a visual identity that feels tactile yet restrained, echoing the physicality of the artist's process while translating it into a coherent digital and printed experience. Tongues of Fire becomes both an exhibition and an act of stitching together eras, materials, sexuality, and emotions.