Carlos Noronha Feio: (igualdade!) / (equality!)

3+1 Arte Contemporânea is pleased to announce (equality!) a public artwork by gallery artist Carlos Noronha Feio.

The artwork will be launched on May 3 from 3–8pm with a community picnic conceived by Noronha Feio and designer Evgeniya Tabakova to celebrate local diversity. The event will take place at Terraços Atelier Noronha Feio, Praceta da Quintinha, 2620-129 Póvoa de Santo Adrião, Odivelas, Portugal.

The project is supported by DGArtes (Directorate-General for the Arts—Ministry of Culture of the Portuguese Republic), the City Council of Odivelas, and is produced by Mapa das Ideias. 

The objective of (equality!) is to raise questions, arouse curiosity and provoke dialogue. Its appearance, painted on the floor of an extensive terrace, visitable, passable and visible from the surrounding buildings and upper terraces, makes it possible - without implying any intrusion into its current public use - to initiate a debate on the nature of everyday life in an urban environment with both one of the highest population densities in Portugal, as well one of its most culturally diverse territories.

The development of a micro-site dedicated to the work, open up a space for debate in the digital realm broadening the impact of the work and creating one more space of participation by local residents and the general public.

Texts were commissioned to the Portuguese curator Ana Anacleto and Cape Verdian curator Irlando Ferreira. Further texts will be published.

(equality!) is also an opportunity for the local youths to visit and consider the implications and the influence of the concept in their own lives. It creates a moment to stop,  a “by the way, what do you think of this..”.

Participatory workshops are being held at local schools exploring subjects such as Visual Arts, Citizenship, Multilinguism and Philosophy.

The community table will be covered by a cloth designed in collaboration by Carlos Noronha Feio and Evgeniya Tabakova, the fabric derives from Tabakova’s circular economy textiles project Fabrics at Play, and is an opportunity to equate sustainability with equality. This will form the base where the picnic will be served. It creates a visual focus for the local population, hopefully producing curiosity and new engagements with the arts and a better awareness of the diversity of cultures and their rich cohabitation. It is also a form of acknowledging plurality beyond social and architectural inequalities. We all share the need to eat, so let’s allow ourselves the experience of sharing a table that reflects the diverse food cultures within the city, the local neighbourhood, and realize that they are not just about sustenance; they are a celebration of (equality!), a representation of diversity and unity presented by our neighbours diverse backgrounds and identities.

Carlos Noronha Feio recent public works include (arkipélg!) in Mindelo’s City Bay, commissioned by CNAD- National Centre for Art Craft and Design of Cabo Verde; (sunclipse!)/(sunsight!) in Berlin’s Rosa-Luxemburg-Straße, commisioned by Kusntverein am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz supported by Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian; (crescei flores!) at Casa da Cerca Contemporary Art Centre in Almada, Portugal. He holds a PhD from the Royal College of Art London.

Evgeniya Tabakova is a designer based in Lisbon currently working on circular economy of textiles with her Fabrics at Play project. Until recently she was the head designer of childrenswear brand Tigers at Play, and previouly was a co-founder and designer of White-Tent brand. Tabakova holds a Master in Textile design from the Royal College of Art in London.

Mapa das Ideias, founded in 1999 built its identity around mediation, creating experiences and projects centered on culture, heritage, citizenship, and new relationships between audiences, arts and knowledge.

3+1 Arte Contemporânea, founded in Lisbon in 2007, was created with the aim of promoting Portuguese and international artists, focusing on original proposals that emphasise the diversity that qualifies contemporary artistic practices. The gallery has distinguished itself by presenting international artists little known to the Portuguese public, along with emerging national talents of exceptional quality.