White

This letter is from Gustavo Romano, the office worker, to Gus Romano the artist.

I have just arrived from a trip that surpassed all expectations, even though I had none before leaving.

I am lucky to work at Central Models, a job that sometimes allows extraordinary work trips. Last year it was Paris, New York and Macau. This year, it was something very different. I travelled with one of the biggest TV figures in Portugal, Manuel Luís Goucha, a true gentleman who has said for more than fifty years that one of his biggest dreams was to visit Lapland, the land of Santa.

Last year I started to work with Manuel Luís Goucha as his digital account. I knew it would be challenging. I respect him deeply, and I had heard many stories about his work ethic. This year, Central Models helped make his dream real. We planned a five day trip to Finland, where it would be minus twenty four degrees. A cold that froze my beard.

I had never been to a snow destination. To be honest, I dislike the cold, the short days and the lack of light. I never imagined choosing a place like this for a holiday. I went without expectations. I was simply glad to spend time with someone I admire.

In the first morning, we went on a snowmobile ride. Suddenly, everything felt magical. Cars buried under snow. Trees that looked covered in cotton. Our footsteps disappearing into white. I felt in awe. During that ride, the world became a black and white film. White in the snow and the sky. The only Darkness we could see was on shadows from the trees. An endless landscape without borders. We stopped in the middle of a frozen lake and lay down on untouched snow. There was no wind and no sound, only my heartbeat. I felt it slow down. For the first time in a long while, I could think about anything I wanted instead of what I had to do next. It was the pause I needed. Neither work nor art. Just being. I felt peace, and a quiet smile in my eyes. A feeling I had only experienced before in Japan.

The following days were filled with reindeer sleds, huskies, and Santa’s village. But the most unexpected moment came at night. We walked through the forest with snowshoes, under a nearly full moon. We did not even need lanterns. Slowly, the sky began to change. At first, only our phone cameras could see the colours. Then the green lights appeared with the naked eye. The sky turned into moving lines of light. Once again, we became silent. Peace arrived like a trance.

This week with Manuel Luís Goucha, and with Tiago, his photographer, was a lesson in attention and presence. Despite his age, Manuel still sees life like a child. He follows his dreams, not to impress anyone, but because they are truly his. Behind the TV personality is a deeply curious person, always asking instead of talking about himself. Through curiosity, he became one of the most cultured people I know, in history, fashion, art and daily life. He has discipline without hardness and knowledge without distance. He makes others feel comfortable just by being there.

White became something else to me. Not emptiness, but calm. Not cold, but clarity. There are many shades of white. Many stories inside silence.

Even though this was a work trip, it felt like I was painting all week. Calm, focused, in the zone. As if life was happening through a camera lens, like a film I did not need to control. Time passed like a blink.

Sometimes, life gives the office worker a gift for the artist.