February 2020 - Cláudia Paiva Silva

Monday, February 24, 2020

A inconveniência de ser livrólico - 1ª edição
February 24, 20200 Comments
Ir a Londres é, para mim, ir a espaços iguais aos de outras idas e ir também a outros tantos que não conhecia ainda. Nomeadamente livrarias. Até parece que cá em Portugal não há, poderão pensar. Até podem mesmo dizer qual necessidade tenho, real, para estar a invadir livrarias e folhear livros, quando "todos" sabemos que o futuro é digital. A resposta é simples, enquanto eu cá andar, enquanto tiver liberdade de escolha, irei optar por livros e páginas físicas. Pelo cheiro de obras antigas e pela tinta de novas edições. Não significa que não adira às novas tecnologias - nem posso atirar pedras porque já tenho alguns livros em formato apto para tablets, computador, Kindle, mas não há melhor prazer do que entrar em pequenas livrarias, principalmente noutros países, nos quais desconheço por completo o grau de literacia, o interesse pela literatura, os hábitos de leitura. Sei, por exemplo, que em Brick Lane, no coração do East End, em Londres, existe uma livraria (Brick Lane Bookshop de nome atual, claro!) que desde os anos 70 sempre pautou por ser irreverente, interventiva, marco da luta da classe operária e pobre da cidade que durante vários séculos foi desterrada para a zona das "docas". Sei também que já em zona "nobre", bem perto do Museu Britânico, existe uma livraria que se chama aprazivelmente "London Review Bookshop", onde entre livros, postais, revistas, existe também um café onde o negócio da literatura bate certo com o dos cappucinos e brownies
De resto, volto a nada saber ao certo, a não ser que tenho a caminho alguns álbuns incríveis sobre a zona leste londrina (publicações da Hoxton Press, cujas capas podem ser vistas nas imagens abaixo), porque é realmente fascinante conhecer não apenas a nossa terra, mas também outras terras. O mundo é global e para muitos de nós, as melhores e às vezes únicas viagens, passam mesmo e apenas pelo mundo do livro.






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Friday, February 14, 2020

Doce Bijou
February 14, 20200 Comments
Nascida no Brasil, entre o Paraíba e o Ceará, cresceu rodeada de Natureza, fossem folhas e palmeiras frondosas, ou o bioma que é a Caatinga, exclusivo do nordeste brasileiro, mais árido e seco. Não é de estranhar então a influência que esta mesma flora tem nas suas criações de joalharia.
Juliana Bezerra, 38 anos, (@Juliana Bezerra) veio para Portugal numa fuga decidida e supostamente temporária para respirar fundo após um problema familar.
Na sua então chegada a Portugal, Juliana, (Ju para os amigos), encontrou não só a paz que procurava, mas também o amor, junto ao que se tornaria mais tarde seu marido. Decidida a ficar de malas, bagagens e coração, procurou então melhor desenvolver as suas técnicas em escolas de joalharia e posteriormente no Atelier de Tereza Seabra onde foi estagiária.
O resultado foi simples. Em pouco tempo o seu nome tornou-se num dos mais conhecidos na internet e o sucesso através do Facebook e Instagram foi crescente. 
Agora, numa colaboração com outra brasileira que tem Portugal no coração e Lisboa na alma, Carolina Henke, a "dona do pedaço" que é a Brigadeirando (@BrigadeirandoLx), Juliana apresenta a coleção Dois Amores, que tem como tema o Amor, claro, e cujo lançamento foi alusivo à data de 14 de Fevereiro, Dia de São Valentim.
Entre o aroma e sabor dos bolos tradicionais, criando também a atmosfera naturista que acompanha a amizade entre as duas criadoras, apresentam-se lembranças únicas sendo possível ainda hoje se adquiriem na loja do Lx Factory e posteriormente no site da designer de jóias, aqui: Juliana Bezerra Atelier e no seu atelier físico no Páteo Bagatela.






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Thursday, February 13, 2020

Bonjour Simone
February 13, 20200 Comments
                   

Simone Matos has always lived near the Atlantic Ocean and that can ultimately change a person. The typical blues and greys from the Lisbon western coast climate are visible and present in her life and are one of the bases for her Jasmin Project – a collage work collective that was first born as a quite private and personal creative journal. Today, the graphic designer has challenged herself and others to make these images together, as a way to relax from the daily craziness but specially to provide a creative mind boost for every one of every age, allowing people to express their feelings in a physical mood board. 

How did Jasmin Project happen? 
SM – This project comes from the heart. It was created about 4 years ago when I started to make image clippings about dreams and magic. It is truth that I have always made collages. I used to personalize my school notebooks and files but is was between high school and the university when I’ve gained a different detailed esthetic sensibility. My artistic essence started when I began looking at fashion magazines, cutting different visual textures, colors and feminine elements and putting it all together in such a way it made sense to me. My first collage, which is called “Jasmim” of course is a composition between art, textures and feminine details – which is the essence of my creations.
                                                
Besides being a very personal art form to express ideas, moods or even private desires, what led you to share it with others?
SM – Well between that period I mentioned, I did voluntary work with elderly people and I feel that finding a space/time for a workshop, to create a group in such a way they can relax and develop their creativity as well as their mental balance is a lovely thing. And that can work for everyone. 

From what you have seen during your workshops, do you feel there is discrimination in some artistic expressions in Portugal, like weaving or embroidery which are still regarded as manual “feminine/female” tasks? Collage per se is not usually accomplished by male artists and you don’t see them as often as woman in your encounters. 
SM - Well actually I don’t feel that even though the way I create a collage is based in dreams, hopes or wishes and of course in that feminine essence. I try to bring some graphic and poetic style along with fashion and surrealism and that, in a last case, is quite “feminine”. However, I’ve had male participants at the workshops which resulted in something very personal and they expressed their imagination in a masculine counterbalance. It was a change of scene. 

                                              


Do you feel that collage as well as urban art can have a social impact and act as an intervention form? Do you think there is some sort of a growing national conscience that it can impact in a political view? 
SM – With absolutely no doubt! Every single art form may have an interventive role in the most various interventive ways and collage is no different. In other countries it is even used in economy magazines as illustrations, so it all depends of the meaning and way you want the collage to work – the importance you want it to have. 

After your voluntary work, have you ever considered to organize once again some workshops and encounters in nursing homes or Senior Universities? What kind of impact do you think it could have?
SM – That’s a wonderful question! Thinking about it, with the memory loss process due to aging, it is quite necessary to create some incentives to creativity as a way to exercise the brain. Establishing a workshop ou formations dynamic that could be applied the older people, stimulating their minds, rescuing the past and making sure about their hopes and believes would be an amazing opportunity. It would give real importance for the expression of their feelings and it optimize their life perspective. For me it would be the best reward possible! .  

Finally, what would you say ii was your biggest conquest so far with this project? 
SM – That answer is very simple! The sharing in the workshops. It was something that I started to think about, but it only became real after I was invited by and agency to be the instructor of a Instax (Fujifilm) workshop. It was really a dream come true and it was so beautiful to see how it all went so smoothly and how all the participants were so focused in it. For me collage was always my mindfulness moment: to slow down, to get focus in the moment and forget about all the distractions (mobile phone eventually!). It is really great to see this dream, the Jasmin Project, to be embraced by so many people and becoming even more real. 
   


(the original text can be seen at A City Made by People, here: Jasmim Project - Construction of the Memory)
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