What Once Was, Will Never Be Again… – 2025.12.16

The Rui Cunha Foundation and Gonçalo Lobo Pinheiro presents the second — and final — volume of the project “What Once Was, Will Never Be Again…”

Portuguese photojournalist Gonçalo Lobo Pinheiro, who has lived in Macau for more than 15 years, will present the second and final volume of the project “What Once Was, Will Never Be Again…” on Tuesday, 16 December, at 6:30 p.m., at the Rui Cunha Foundation gallery. Alongside the book launch, an exhibition of 20 photographs will open and remain on display until 10 January 2026.

“The second volume of this book continues to be an encounter between the past and the present. As I have said before, the idea is not a pioneering one in the world, but it turns out to be in Macau — and that is where the enthusiasm began. Just like in the first book, over the course of a little more than a year, I collected old images of the territory, in black and white or sepia, in different formats. I acquired them through auctions, online, from private owners, in shops, and even in Portugal. Some images were also loaned to me,” the author noted, adding that in this latest endeavour there is one photograph taken in the 19th century, at the Protestant Cemetery.

“Macau has changed a lot in recent years. The old photographs show this clearly. And now, what to do with them? On the one hand, it is still possible to recreate some settings; on the other hand, it is impossible to find points of contact in other photographs, because things simply no longer exist in the territory. It is a difficult task. Everything has changed. That is why, in the vast majority of cases, what once was will never be again…,” he added.

With a foreword written by Portuguese writer and professor Henrique Levy — who lived in Macau in the 1980s — the book, designed by Carlos Canhita and published by Ipsis Verbis, features 40 photographs across nearly 80 pages. The publication is sponsored by Banco Nacional Ultramarino (BNU) and the Rui Cunha Foundation.

“What Once Was Will Never Be Again shows us Macau as a city of encounters, of cultural blending, and of coexistence between worlds that intertwine. Here, Portuguese heritage coexists with Chinese tradition and multiple Asian influences. The territory, shaped more by its people than by its architecture, becomes a stage for human gestures, a frame for daily stories, a silent witness to the interactions that define the city. Churches, ancient temples, stone arches, and squares reveal themselves as poetic arenas where the human dimension shines in its ethical and aesthetic form,” the foreword reads.

The book costs 250 patacas and can be purchased at selected bookstores in Macau or online through the author’s website at www.goncalolobopinheiro.com.

The Exhibition will be on display until January 10th, 2025.

Admission is free.
Don’t miss it!
For Macau, Further and Higher!