Under the pretext of celebrating the centenary of Professor Laura Ayres, the Municipality of Loulé, through the Municipal Museum of Loulé, requested the creation of an exhibition to honour this nationally significant figure. For the development of the exhibition concept, coordination was carried out with the museum, as well as the co-author Cristina Fé Santos, who, together with Rui Lourenço, created the texts about Dr. Laura Ayres and provided images of the honoree.
This project was developed by designers Luís Baptista and Marlon Duarte, who, based on the briefing provided by Cristina Fé Santos and Ana Sousa (CML - Museum), and the research conducted on the honoree, created an aesthetic environment that was fitting to her personality.
Professor Dr. Laura Ayres, in addition to being a distinguished doctor, researcher, professor, scientist, and politician, with significant national and international relevance, "was a woman of affection and action. Considered a fighter, optimist, and non-conformist by nature, she was also charismatic, easily building relationships, as well as being creative and curious. These and other characteristics "made her a pioneer in the field of public health and virology, but also a woman of her time."
Furthermore, her immediate interest in research, particularly when the first cases of people infected with the AIDS virus were diagnosed, led her to dedicate her "heart and soul" to all those who sought her, without fear of contagion or prejudice, making Professor Dr. Laura Ayres an extremely relevant figure in the fight against this disease.
These factors led us to choose pink to represent the graphic pieces, which were based on a 12-panel exhibition measuring 75x180 cm, the creation of a printed postcard distributed by CTT, as well as other promotional and communication materials, such as posters and programmes.
The rare images of the honoree, along with their poor quality, typical of the era, required us to take extra care in processing the images, given the size of the exhibition panels. The combination of elements in the arrangement of the pieces that made up the exhibition aimed to capture the dynamism of her personality, highlighting her image and harmoniously combining it with the texts written by Cristina Fé Santos and Rui Lourenço.
For the postcard layout, two images from different moments in the honoree's life were selected, always with a rosy tone, which was evident in all the pieces of the project. Additionally, to contextualise the project as part of the celebrations for her centenary, a "stamp" was created to represent the 100th anniversary of her birth. This stamp was placed on all the layouts of the project.
Finally, Flow Productions worked in partnership with KoisasKomideias, who printed and assembled the necessary structures for the exhibition. It was set up on a custom stand with a steel structure, using connectors that linked the pieces of the structure. The 75x180 cm panels were printed on vinyl, laminated, and applied to Dibond boards, with magnetic strips that allowed for easier assembly and disassembly of the itinerant exhibition. The exhibition was very well received by both the client and the visitors, and Flow Productions received highly positive feedback for this project.