Constança Saraiva

artistiek onderzoek - sociaal-maatschappelijk

I am an artist, mother, researcher, and editorial designer from Portugal, based in Rotterdam. My work involves the creation of socially engaged art projects that span different fields and mediums. Through my projects, I aim to explore the role of art in a social context. I believe that by creating spaces for alternative learning, co-creation, and collaboration, art can help us imagine different ways of living, inspire positive transformations, and connect people toward a better world.


Moeders van Hillesluis - Moeders van Hillesluis, means Mothers from Hillesluis in Dutch. It is the title of a socially engaged art project with artist Bérénice Staiger in collaboration with Wijkcollectie and three groups of women from Hillesluis, Rotterdam — Mamas Garden, Culturhuis Hillesluis and Kerngroep Slaghekstraat. This project marks the ongoing conversation in our shared artist's studio that started seven years ago when we both became first-time mothers. We found ourselves navigating the realms of motherhood and art together. Soon, we started meeting with our children in Rotterdam's playgrounds, where we exchanged thoughts and experiences as both mothers and artists. Motherhood was transformative and became integral to our identities as women and artists. When Stichting Wijkcollectie invited us to develop a project in Hillesluis, Rotterdam, inspired by our own maternal experiences, we proposed to work with mothers from the neighborhood. The project aimed to give visibility, empower, and value motherhood in Hillesluis. Becoming a mother brought to light the immense amount of time, hard work, and care that goes into mothering. Despite being an essential component of our society, this labor is often overlooked and undervalued. We started the project with each group by discussing matrescence — the process of becoming a mother and the physical and emotional changes that come with it. We worked together through collective mapping and drawing of a mother's body. In the following sessions, we explored how children are our clearest mirrors and our reciprocal learning relationship with our children. In these sessions, we drew and mapped our relationships with our children, their different needs, what we give them, and what we receive from them. Finally, we explored motherhood in the neighborhood. Where can we find it? Is it visible? Are neighborhoods and cities designed for mothers, too? We also addressed the challenges of isolation in motherhood and highlighted the benefits of community connections. In these various meetings, conversations, and workshops with groups of women from Hillesluis, art allowed us all to share and articulate our often intimate and emotional experiences and stories surrounding motherhood. These interactions culminated in drawings, stories, and maps presented in a three-fold installation at INTRO, an exhibition space at Hillevliet, a hub for culture and community in Hillesluis, Rotterdam, in November 2023.
Conversas — an international community - In 2012 I started Conversas with my dear friend Mafalda Fernandes in Lisbon. Meanwhile, I brought Conversas to Rotterdam. Many people also decided to take the working model of Conversas along with them to their cities — in an unexpected turn, Conversas became a used and appropriated method. In 2019 I got a Research and Development Grant (O&O) from the CBK Rotterdam to investigate this international phenomenon of Conversas — how could different local Conversas projects grow into a global community of Conversas, what would be the identity for the Conversas international community and how can all these Conversas inspire others? By strengthening the relationship between all Conversas — an international community ­— the synergy, motivation, and knowledge created from it can feed each local Conversas. This local and international dynamic can be compelling. It helps create open-minded, caring, generous communities. And by facilitating a strong relationship between these communities, they could inspire new people to initiate more Conversas. All Conversas’ initiators and organizers were invited to participate and share their views, experiences, and critics on Conversas. To start, I sent them all a letter (via post ✉️ !). The results of this research project were a text with an analysis of the results, a new website, and an online symposium. See more at www.conversas.net.
Readings on Economy Below Sea Level - Over two years, a group of Portuguese people in Rotterdam held meetings to read together. The ambition of these meetings was to discuss and better understand the socio-economic situation in Portugal. This project was initiated by the artists Constança Saraiva and Patrícia Pinheiro de Sousa. To conclude the project, they commissioned texts and photographs and edited and produced the publication "Readings on Economy Below Sea Level." It unfolds different perspectives on the topic and celebrates the multifaceted act of reading collectively. The book "Readings on Economy Below Sea Level" presents a preface by the economist Prof. João César das Neves (the author of the book that was read), a photo essay by Pedro dos Reis, an article by economists Nuno Camacho (Ph.D.) and Diogo Gonçalves (Ph.D.), an excerpt on reading groups by Maiko Tanaka and a poster with annotations from the reading sessions. Editing Constança Saraiva; Patrícia Pinheiro de Sousa Graphic Design Constança Saraiva, Patrícia Pinheiro de Sousa, Yin Yin Wong Texts Constança Saraiva, Patrícia Pinheiro de Sousa, João César das Neves, Nuno Camacho, Diogo Gonçalves, Pedro dos Reis, Maiko Tanaka Languages English and Portuguese English Proofreading Arielle Fenton Size 13x19cm, 47 pp., softcover Printing Publication Studio Rotterdam Published by Publication Studio Rotterdam ISBN 978-94-92308-11-5
Video about project “A Little Country Across the Ocean” - This artistic and educational project was developed with more than two hundred students of Portuguese language schools in the states of New York and New Jersey, in the United States of America. It aimed to: - Explore the Portuguese memory and heritage in New York and New Jersey; - To strengthen the Portuguese identity among the younger generation; - Promote intergenerational relationships within Portuguese families; - Promote Portuguese identity and memory in the USA; - To inform the general public in New York about the Portuguese immigration history, Portugal and its culture; The project unfolded in three phases: 1) the “Notebook of the 14 Questions about Portugal” – an activity booklet about Portugal sent to the students 2) The participation in Portugal in the Soho festival - where the notebook results were presented, where we met the children personally, and many other activities for Portuguese-American families were developed. 3) A book that finalizes the project – an edition of the written and drawn material by the Portuguese-American children that seeks to show their perspective on their Portuguese origins.
Biblioteca Infantil Roterdão - Biblioteca Infantil Roterdão is a Portuguese children’s library based in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. It was created in 2016 by Andreia Costa, Constança Saraiva, and Patrícia Pinheiro de Sousa, having Diana Dinis joining the team officially in 2018. Besides this team of Portuguese women in Rotterdam, the project counts with the help and support of many friends, volunteers, and institutions (i.e. Arte Institute and Instituto Camões). The mission of Biblioteca Infantil Roterdão is to bring the Portuguese speaking families in Rotterdam together (Portuguese, Cape-Verdean, Angolan, etc.), facilitate children’s books in Portuguese for those families, and help promote the Portuguese language to anyone interested. BIR organizes monthly storytelling sessions open to all and provides around 300 Portuguese children’s books donated by publishers and families. It also published two children’s books, and is, since November 2018 a foundation! For more info (in Portuguese, mostly) on the events and project please go to: www.bibliotecaroterdao.org
Who are the Portuguese from Soho? - Who are the Portuguese from Soho? Research → Installation → Book Arte Institute commissioned me to develop the concept and design a book on the Portuguese from Soho — a disappearing community of Portuguese immigrants that settled in New York in the 1960s. This publication aims to add information, give visibility and present a more comprehensive perspective on this community. The book presents their story while reflecting on the issues of immigration, assimilation, and longing. I was in New York for a period of artistic research in 2018 – I met community members and investigated the history of the Portuguese community in local public archives in Soho. Additionally, for the “Portugal in Soho” event, the artist I created a participatory installation where the public could contribute their stories, memories, and photographs and collectively map the “Portuguese stories from Soho.” This project was made possible with the kind support of CBK Rotterdam.
Worden Dromen Oud? - An intergenerational meeting made for the series of picnics by Weronika Zielinska for the Join In! initiative by Museum van Bommel van Dam in Venlo, The Netherlands. The meeting took part in the park of the museum where participants were asked to work in pairs. Having as a basis an envelope with questions about dreams (goals), the project aimed to trigger a reflection on how can two different generations learn from each other on how to not give up their dreams. The collected material of the meeting was later shown in a small exhibition in the museum.
Community Art — A Poetic Archive on Aging - This book is the result of project House/Archive, — an art residency in a daycare centre in the neighbourhood of Sé, in Lisbon. House/Archive was a case study for the thesis developed within the MA in Museology at the Faculty of Fine Arts of Lisbon, completed in 2012, the content of which is reproduced here. It is the starting point of an investigation of what is Community Art and about the issues of aging, the value that is given to it and its curious connection with childhood. The study of project House/Archive shows that the research on a community is essential to achieve a level of intimacy with their social, historical and human context, proving the importance and consequences of this method in the artistic process of those who work with communities. The necessity for documentation of these art practices leads to the construction of an archive formed by the remains of the artistic process. This singular way of archiving and of constituting an archive leads to the concept of Poetic Archive.
video about project “Inside Out or The Countries We Carry” - (subtitled in English)
Conversas Rotterdam - Conversas is a project initiated by Constança Saraiva and Mafalda Fernandes in Lisbon, in 2012. They are a series of informal meetings made so that we can get to know and discuss projects and interests. In these evenings, three Conversadores (those who talk at Conversas) present their projects or interests for thirty minutes each. The dialogue flows natural and informally, calling for uncompromised and genuine participation. Meanwhile, Constança Saraiva initiated the project in Rotterdam, the Netherlands in 2014, and from there the model of the Conversas has spread. Nowadays, it's a project of many other people and cities. You can see all Conversas happening in different countries here: www.conversas.net