loving life in my 50s

Inside Ler Devagar, one of the most atmospheric and interesting bookshops I’ve ever visited, is a space filled with kinaesthetic art. Inside this exhibition, most afternoons, sits the artist, happily giving mini tours of his ‘toys’ made from recycled bits and bobs.

Pietro Proserpio may be 80-years-old but his youthful soul twinkles in his eyes and it’s there in his cheeky grin. With a passion for mechanics and art, he continues to create and enchant visitors from around the world – and I was one of them.

Greeted by 40,000 books!

I met Pietro purely by chance while on holiday in Lisbon. Escaping the rain (contrary to popular belief, it’s similar to Cornwall’s weather!); we burst through the glass door of a bookshop and immediately stopped in our tracks. In front of us was the largest bookcase I’ve ever seen in my life! It was filled with new and second-hand books from the floor to the top of a very high ceiling, stretching all the way along the wide room.

Overhead was a white bicycle with moving wings. It was ridden by a sculptured woman with a long, flowing scarf – and effortlessly glided high across the room on trapeze wires. Classical music billowed into the room as someone opened the door to the auditorium.

People everywhere were reading books, either standing at the bookcases, relaxing on a lounge chair or while enjoying coffee and cake (or gin and tonic if you’re like me!) from the bar and café. I loved the atmosphere instantly!

Livraria Ler Devagar

And this was not just any bookshop; it was Ler Devagar (translated to mean ‘slow read’), which is considered to be one of the 20 most beautiful bookshops in the world.

After exploring downstairs, we made our way up the metal staircase following signs to an exhibition – and there we came face-to-face with Pietro. I stopped to chat with him after he gave us a delightful mini tour of his work, including the iconic ‘flying bicycle’.

Pietro smiles as he describes himself as a kinaesthetic artist and an inventor but prefers to call himself ‘a worker of poetic machines’.

“When I was a little boy, I made my own toys. At 10, I made toys for my little friends. I became a father and made toys for my children. Then I became a grandfather and made toys for my grandchildren. Now I am closing the circle – I am making toys for myself.”

I did not like yarns, I liked mechanics

“My mother wrote poetry and people say I got something from her. My life was not an artistic life. On the contrary, I have a background in textile factories but I did not like yarns, I liked mechanics, so I trained myself and I did a course at Barcelona.”

Pietro’s inspiration is Leonardo da Vinci. He waves his arm around at his inventions, stopping at the ‘flying bicycle’. “I think I will not need to explain why as you see my bicycle wings? They are Leonardo’s. And I called my first piece ‘Mona Lisa’.”

Following his passion

For more than a quarter of a century, Pietro has been ‘a worker of poetic machines’ and has always wanted to be seen and heard through his art. He was invited to exhibit his work at Ler Devagar, when it opened here at the LX Factory in 2009. As fate would have it, he’s had a permanent exhibition here called ‘Objectos Cinemáticos’ ever since.

“One of the most important things of my art is to make people smile and be happy because the world is very sad – every day it is worse,” says Pietro, his smile vanishing momentarily.

Useless things oblige people to think

“My philosophy is that we should make useless things. If everybody makes only useful things, the world should be very boring – because useless things oblige people to think. And that’s more useful than any useful thing.”

Pietro and I chat a little longer, shaking hands goodbye, then out into the rain I go, again, with even more of a spring in my step.

If you feel like dropping in to see Pietro, you’ll find him upstairs in his workshop every day except Sunday, from around 3pm to 7pm. It’s worth climbing the stairs up to his platform to see some of his artwork, to meet him and let him take you on a mini tour of about 10 minutes. Take some coins if you choose, and pop them into one of his artworks at the end of the tour as a donation.

Long may Pietro Proserpio keep us smiling, thinking and being entertained.

For more information on Livraria Ler Devagar, click here. To find out what else is happening at the LX Factory (an atmospheric shopping and restaurant area in an old abandoned factory, which some call the coolest place in Lisbon), click here. And should you be heading to Bordeaux, read my blog ‘10 Fun things to see and do in Bordeaux‘.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

•