Sumários
Urban art as an institutionalised cultural field
10 Março 2026, 17:00 • Paula Alexandra Carvalho Alves Rodrigues Horta
With reference to Ricardo Campos' (2021) "Urban Art in Lisbon: Opportunities, Tensions and Paradoxes", This lesson explored urban art as an institutionalised cultural field, examining how practices that emerged from informal and often illegal contexts have increasingly been recognised, regulated, and supported by cultural institutions and public authorities.
The lesson also investigated the role of public authorities and urban policy in shaping artistic practices, particularly through initiatives linked to the idea of the “creative city.” It considered how institutional recognition can create new opportunities for artists, such as funding, legal spaces, and visibility.
Students critically examined the tensions and ambivalences that arise when urban art becomes institutionalised, including debates around artwashing, instrumentalisation, and unequal power relations between artists, institutions, and city authorities.
Graffiti, street art, and the dialectics of the city
5 Março 2026, 17:00 • Paula Alexandra Carvalho Alves Rodrigues Horta
This lesson examined graffiti and street art as urban cultural practices, exploring how they emerge from and interact with the city. Students were introduced to the concept of dialectics to understand the tensions and contradictions that shape street art, such as legality and illegality, visibility and erasure, and resistance and commercialization.
The lesson analysed the effects of urban policing, surveillance, and regulation on graffiti and street art, while critically evaluating the distinctions often made between the two. Students also examined how these practices intersect with urban economies, including tourism, branding, and gentrification.
Attention was given to street art as both image and action, emphasizing performance, risk, and the physical act of making work in public space. The session also explored visibility, erasure, and urban memory, as well as the role of digital media in documenting and circulating street art.
Site-specific and land art
3 Março 2026, 17:00 • Paula Alexandra Carvalho Alves Rodrigues Horta
This lesson introduced site-specific art, examining how artworks are created in response to a particular location. Students distinguished site-specific work from studio-based art and explored key forms such as land art, installation, environmental art, and public art.
The lesson analysed the relationship between art and place, considering how location, context, and environment shape meaning. It also explored the role of the viewer’s body, spatial experience, and the importance of time, ephemerality, and documentation in works that may change or disappear.
Students developed critical and spatial thinking skills while reflecting on how site-specific art challenges ideas of permanence, ownership, authorship, and the role of art institutions. The session included a screening and discussion of Rivers and Tides: Working with Time (2002), a documentary about Andy Goldsworthy’s temporary works in nature.
Decoding Contemporary Art by Jessica Cerasi
26 Fevereiro 2026, 17:00 • Paula Alexandra Carvalho Alves Rodrigues Horta
This lesson introduced contemporary art as an open and evolving field shaped by experimentation, new media, and conceptual approaches. Students identified key shifts from traditional art practices, focusing on the importance of ideas, processes, and context over purely technical skill.
We explored the historical foundations of contemporary art and examined how artists respond to social and cultural issues. Students developed critical viewing and interpretive skills, engaging with ambiguity and recognising the changing roles of both artists and audiences.
The lesson concluded with a critical analysis of My Bed by Tracey Emin, applying these concepts to understand how contemporary art challenges definitions of art and meaning.
Art Institutions and the Contemporary Art Ecosystem
24 Fevereiro 2026, 17:00 • Paula Alexandra Carvalho Alves Rodrigues Horta
The lesson developed a critical understanding of contemporary art by exploring its definitions, contexts, and structures. Students engaged with key debates surrounding what constitutes contemporary art, examining how it differs from modern art in terms of frameworks, concepts, and historical positioning. The lesson investigated the contemporary art ecosystem, focusing on the roles played by art institutions, analysing how institutional influence and power shape artistic production, circulation, and reception. Through case studies, students discussed the viewer experience of the contemporary art museum.