Play Attention by Nuno Viegas and Ståle Gerhardsen, Cascais, Portugal

Play Attention
Nuno Viegas & Ståle Gerhardsen · Festival Infinito 2026 · Bairro da Torre
Photo as published in New Street Art Vol. 78
On the yellow end wall of an apartment block in Cascais, three small figures in striped tops climb on, hang from and are carried by a hooded adult whose face is wrapped in white. Nuno Viegas and Ståle Gerhardsen painted it together in September 2026, one of four walls that pairs of artists painted for the eighth Festival Infinito in Bairro da Torre.
4 things to know
- Not necessarily childrenIn their joint statement the artists say the small figures “are not necessarily children” but stand for a childlike state of mind. They seem to pull the adult upwards, “as if trying to lift him out of the rigidity, responsibilities, and seriousness that gradually accumulate as we grow older.” Artists’ statement
- The title is on the wallThe words PLAY ATTENTION are lettered small at the foot of the white side wall, around the corner from the yellow gable. They show at the bottom right of the photo above and in the city’s own street-level photo. City of Cascais photos
- Born from repainted wallsThe festival’s roots go back to 2016, when young people in the neighbourhood saw its walls vandalised more and more, although the council and the parish kept painting them white again. The youth association Somos Torre grew out of that. Its first Festival Infinito, in 2018, part of Cascais’s year as European Youth Capital, took the neighbourhood’s open-air gallery from 13 to 21 works. City of Cascais · NiT
- Their second collaboration of 2026According to Viegas, as reported by StreetArtNews, this was the pair’s second collaboration this year. Viegas’s own portfolio lists three more walls of his from 2026: in Estremoz, in Calais (22 x 11 m) and in Faro. StreetArtNews · Nuno Viegas
Check-in guide
- 📍
- Bairro da Torre, Cascais. No source names a street address for this wall, so the Maps button opens an approximate point (see “Map point” under The facts); look for the yellow gable end.
- 👀
- Seen from the street. Trees stand in front of its lower part in the city’s photo.
- 🎨
- The other three walls of 2026 are in the same neighbourhood: Jaqueline Arashida with Los Pepes, Facio with Mohamed L’Ghacham, and CMarie with Blac Dwelle (City of Cascais). Time Out says the four join Cascais’s street-art trail; its guide is the second button.
- 🚶
- Somos Torre has run guided visits of the neighbourhood’s murals, according to its vice-president Claudino Brito in a city article from about 2019 (City of Cascais). We found no current schedule.
Sightings
- 20267 Sep
Festival opens
- 202614 Sep
Finished; city photos
- 202615 Sep
Time Out, city photo
- 202616 Sep
NiT: done on 14 Sep
- 202621 Sep
StreetArtNews report
- 202630 Sep
Photo reposted on WAU
Every stamp links to the dated source.
On the record
8ª Edição Festival Infinito
“A parceria entre os dois reforça o alcance internacional do festival e a sua capacidade de atrair visitantes de fora do concelho.”
“The partnership between the two strengthens the festival’s international reach and its ability to draw visitors from outside the municipality.” The city’s news item on the 2026 edition.
There are four new street art murals to discover in Cascais
“Algarve-born Nuno Viegas, founder of the Policromia Crew, painted his featureless white-masked figure surrounded by the dreamy characters of Norwegian artist Ståle Gerhardsen”
By Vera Moura. The article’s photo of the finished wall is credited to the city (CMC).
Cascais tem quatro novos murais de arte urbana e estão todos neste bairro
“Já Nuno Viegas e Ståle Gerhardsen, juntaram a linguagem da arte urbana portuguesa à abordagem gráfica do artista norueguês.”
“Nuno Viegas and Ståle Gerhardsen, for their part, joined the language of Portuguese urban art to the Norwegian artist’s graphic approach.” By Izabelli Pincelli.
“Play Attention”, the artists’ statement
“There is a sense of resistance and surrender at the same time.”
On the hooded adult, who keeps “his closed and mysterious appearance” while being drawn into play. Published on Ståle Gerhardsen’s website.
The facts
- Artists
- Nuno Viegas, also known as Metis, Portuguese, born in Faro in 1985 (Urban Nation); Ståle Gerhardsen, a Norwegian multidisciplinary artist from Trondheim (City of Cascais) Checked
- Title
- “Play Attention”, on both artists’ websites (Gerhardsen, Viegas) Checked
- Painted
- During the festival, 7–14 September 2026; finished by Monday 14 September Checked
- Made for
- Festival Infinito 2026. The city’s news item: “Organizado pela associação juvenil Somos Torre, com o apoio do Município de Cascais” (organised by the youth association Somos Torre, with the support of the Municipality of Cascais) Checked
- Place
- Bairro da Torre, parish of Cascais e Estoril, on the end wall of an apartment block Checked
- Map point
- Approximate: 38.7019, −9.4402, taken from the Street Art Cities pin for Telmo Miel’s 2018 Infinito mural “Glocal”, now listed as removed. Its drone photos show the same gable end and tree-lined street as the aerial views on Gerhardsen’s page, but that is our own comparison; no source gives the address Unconfirmed
- Medium
- Spray paint on a concrete wall Checked
- Size
- The artists’ own figures: about 17.5 x 7.4 m on Gerhardsen’s page (repeated by StreetArtNews); about 17 x 7 m on Viegas’s site Reported
- Status
- Standing; the city published photos of the finished wall on 14 September 2026 Checked
Related
- On World Art Utopia: New Street Art! (20 Photos) — Vol. 78 (2026), where the photo above appeared.
- Ten images of the wall, including two drone views of its street, on Ståle Gerhardsen’s project page, with the artists’ full statement.
- How the murals began: Somos Torre’s president José Avelino, as the city paraphrases him, on a community that was “muito vandalizada” (heavily vandalised), in “Bairro da Torre em Cascais aberto ao mundo” (City of Cascais, about 2019).
- The 2024 edition, themed “Collab”, when four pairs of artists painted in Torre (Time Out Portugal, 6 September 2024).
All sources (14)
The artists
- Ståle Gerhardsen: “Play Attention” (project page), September 2026. Title, credits, spray paint, about 17.5 x 7.4 m, the artists’ statement; ten images whose file names are dated 21 September 2026. In English.
- Nuno Viegas: “Mural” (portfolio). Play Attention, 2026: spray paint on concrete, about 17 x 7 m, Cascais, a collab with Gerhardsen for Festival Infinito; his other 2026 walls. In English.
- Urban Nation: “Nuno Viegas” (artist page). Also known as Metis; born in Faro in 1985, raised in Quarteira; founder of Policromia Crew. In English.
- Nuno Viegas on Instagram: post DdhMlVnjO41, credited by StreetArtNews for its images. Not opened.
City of Cascais
- “8ª Edição Festival Infinito”, 14 September 2026. Festival dates, organiser and support, the four pairs, the festival’s roots; photos credited CMC | AMM | TJ | AC. In Portuguese.
- “Bairro da Torre em Cascais aberto ao mundo”, page dated 22 September 2025, text from about 2019. How Somos Torre began; guided visits. In Portuguese. (archived copy)
Press
- Time Out Cascais: “There are four new street art murals to discover in Cascais”, 15 September 2026. By Vera Moura. In English.
- NiT: “Cascais tem quatro novos murais de arte urbana e estão todos neste bairro”, 16 September 2026. By Izabelli Pincelli. Completion on 14 September; the festival’s roots. In Portuguese.
- Periodistas en Español: “Festival de Arte Urbano ‘Infinito’ en Cascais con ocho artistas y cuatro murales”, 20 September 2026. Largely follows the city’s news item. In Spanish. (archived copy)
- StreetArtNews: “Nuno Viegas and Ståle Gerhardsen Complete ‘Play Attention’ for Festival Infinito 2026 in Cascais”, 21 September 2026. By Rom Levy. The second-collaboration remark; images via Viegas’s Instagram. In English.
Background and location
- Time Out Portugal: “Infinito dá cor a quatro fachadas do bairro da Torre”, 6 September 2024. The 2024 edition, themed “Collab”. In Portuguese. (archived copy)
- Time Out Cascais: “A guide with a lot of colour: the best of street art in Cascais”, 22 November 2024. Places Telmo Miel’s “Glocal” on Travessa do Sargo. In English. (archived copy)
- Street Art Cities: “Glocal” by Telmo Miel (map marker). Infinito 2018; R. Caravelas 7; pin 38.7018652, −9.4401735; last seen 23 April 2025; now listed as removed.
The photo
- World Art Utopia: “New Street Art! (20 Photos) — Vol. 78”, 30 September 2026. The photo at the top of this page; photographer not identified. In English.
Artwork File · Last checked 30 September 2026 · Certainty labels follow How We Verify Art · All Artwork Files