MAAT celebrates 10 years with exhibition of Joana Vasconcelos

A exhibition entitled “Vénus — Valentino Garavani by the look of Joana Vasconcelos”, will be patent between October 02 this year and February 22, 2027 in the Galleries 1 and 2 of MAAT Gallery, result of an adaptation of the project designed by PM23 – Fondazione Valentino Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti, in partnership with the house Valentino, inaugurated in January in Rome, indicates a communiqué of the museum.

The version to be presented in Lisbon is developed in a new architectural and exhibition context, constituting “a new chapter” of this project, says MAAT, adding that at the center of the exhibition will be “Valkyrie Venus”, produced in 2025, a monumental textile sculpture designed by Joana Vasconcelos as a reflection on the legacy of the Italian stylist who named the show.

Recognised for its monumental facilities, Joana Vasconcelos created for the museum a specific exhibition path that brings together iconic works and new creations inspired by the universe of Valentino Garavani (1932-2026), establishing a dialogue with more than 30 pieces of high-cost and 'prêt-à-porter' of the Italian creator.

The course of the exhibition will develop continuously through the two galleries, “exploring affinities between the author’s artistic language and Valentino’s work, in a reflection on creation, craftsmanship, identity and beauty”.

The new works also include “Pingures in Crochet”, a series that transforms textile into a pictorial surface inspired by Josef Hoffmann present in the Valentino Garavani Haute Couture collection autumn-winter 1989-1990, and “Sacro Cuore”, a suspended textile sculpture created for this exhibition.

The show also includes some of the most emblematic works of the Portuguese artist, including “Marilyn”, the high-heeled shoes built with pans and lids, “Garden of Eden”, an immersive installation that invites the public to go through a maze of artificial flowers, and “Independent Heart #3”, sculpture built from plastic cutlery inspired by the traditional heart of Viana.

First winner of the New Artists Award EDP Foundation, in 2000, Joana Vasconcelos has been developing for more than three decades a work characterized by the appropriation of objects of everyday life and traditional craft techniques, reinterpreted on a monumental scale to question issues such as identity, the role of women and contemporary society.

The artist, who gained international projection in 2005 with the installation “The Bride”, presented at the Venice Art Biennale, represented Portugal at the same event in 2013, and was the first woman and the youngest creator to hold an individual exhibition at the Palace of Versailles in France, presenting projects at institutions such as the Guggenheim Bilbao Museum, the Pitti Palace and the Uffizi Galleries in Florence, among others.

In recent years he has presented exhibitions in Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Brazil, the United States and Italy.