From vibrant graffiti on factory walls to collaborations with the world’s most exclusive luxury brands, Vitorino Vong has painted his way into the fabric of Macao. His murals breathe life into the city’s streets – on Rua de São Tiago da Barra, Travessa da Assunção and Taipa’s bustling Rua do Cunha – transforming blank walls into vivid works of art.
For Vong, it all started with a pen and paper. Weekend yum cha outings with family doubled as art lessons, as he watched his uncle sketch on the backs of paper menus. At home, he admired his cousin’s drawings of Digimon characters.
“My cousin could draw one of the characters, and I thought it was beautiful, so I copied him,” Vong says.
Soon, he was sketching everything from anime characters in One Piece to his favourite vehicles and robots. Then, he started painting. As a teenager, his artistic pursuits expanded to graffiti. But today, his work is far more polished – and impossible to miss. And his ceaseless experimentation still moves the needle for a career that’s anything but conventional.
Lessons learned through self-expression
At 11, Vong began formal training under renowned Macao painter Lio Man Cheong, who taught him the fundamentals of observation and technique.
“He showed me how to observe, feel, and really touch the objects I was painting,” says Vong. “His careful and elegant teaching style shaped my own approach to art.”
But Vong admits that much of his artistic development came from self-study. “I think self-reliance made me progress more,” he explains.
As a student, he often helped classmates with projects like landscape paintings or name-tag designs. But his creativity sometimes landed him in trouble – particularly when he used classroom desks as makeshift canvases. “Every time I drew on the desk, I got sent to the discipline office,” he says with a laugh.
In high school, Vong’s passion expanded to graffiti – despite its illegal status in Macao. He would sneak onto the streets or fire escapes of factory buildings around Avenida de Horta e Costa to practice. Later, at 16, he enrolled in a graffiti class to deepen his understanding of the art form. It changed the trajectory of his future in the field.
“Graffiti introduced me to colour, which was a big shift from my earlier black-and-white sketches,” he explains. “It allowed me to express myself in new ways.”
From freelance work to major collaborations
From spray-painting iron gates to designing sportswear for school events and creating murals for local businesses, his work quickly gained attention. One of his first significant pieces – a Madonna mural for a tutoring centre – still exists, even though the centre itself has closed.
His artistic curiosity later led him to study sculpture at Macao Polytechnic University, where he explored three-dimensional techniques to expand his creative horizons. “It was less inspiring than self-directed projects,” he admits, “but it gave me a strong foundation.”
By the time Vong collaborated with Dolce & Gabbana to paint on handbags – a project he approached with a mix of excitement and fear – his career had gained serious momentum. “The bags were very expensive, and I was afraid of making mistakes,” he says. That project opened doors to partnerships with global powerhouses like Dior, Giorgio Armani, Prada and Louis Vuitton, as well as murals for properties like the Grand Lisboa Palace.
Many of his other murals today beautify some of Macao’s most iconic tourism sites, including the Escada do Coxo in Taipa, the Travessa da Assunção by the Inner Harbour and the Largo do Pagode in Barra.
Yet not all of Vong’s creations endure. One of his most intricate murals – a bird painting in Coloane – was lost to redevelopment. “I worked very hard on that painting, and it matched the environment perfectly,” he says. To preserve his legacy, Vong now documents his work through photography, ensuring its beauty isn’t forgotten even if the original piece is gone.
Macao: A growing platform for great art
While Vong prefers the independence of solo work to joining art associations, he’s excited by the evolution of Macao’s art scene. Increasing collaborations between local artists and luxury hotels, along with revitalisation projects in older neighbourhoods, have created new opportunities for public art.
“Casinos and hotels are starting to collaborate with local artists, which is a great opportunity,” he says. “These spaces provide a stage for artists to showcase their work.”
Looking back on his journey – from the child copying Digimon sketches to the globally recognised figure working with luxury brands – Vong hesitates to call himself a role model but offers simple advice to aspiring artists: “Stay true to your original aspirations.”
For him, art is about bringing beauty into the world and continually evolving your craft, whether through graffiti, murals or sculptures. Vong’s story reflects a lifelong commitment to this mission – to self-expression. From Macao’s streets to its grandest venues, his work proves that even the most fleeting creations can leave a lasting impression.
