Lisbon, Feb. 10, 2026 (Lusa) - An exhibition covering 25 years of artistic creation in Portugal, based on the choices that built the EDP Foundation Art Collection, opens on Wednesday at the Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology (MAAT) in Lisbon.
Curated by João Pinharanda, Margarida Chantre and Sérgio Mah, the exhibition is entitled "Turn around. A look at the EDP Foundation Art Collection (Part I)" and brings together works by artists such as Adriana Proganó, Ana Jotta, Gabriel Abrantes, João Pedro Croft, Joana Vasconcelos, Luisa Cunha and João Paulo Feliciano, among others.
On display until 25 January 2027 at MAAT Central, the exhibition - composed of two moments that represent one of the largest public presentations of this collection ever - aims to propose "a plural and kaleidoscopic reading of artistic creation" in the country, based on the choices that have constituted it over two and a half decades, according to information from MAAT.
The title of the exhibition is taken from a sound work by Luisa Cunha presented at the beginning of the tour, and calls for "a plurality of meanings" in a direct appeal to the visitor: "Turn around, look at yourself, turn, look around you," explain the curators in a press release.
The selection presented captures part of a collection of more than 2,450 works by 345 artists and allows visitors to follow "the evolution of artistic creation in Portugal over the last two and a half decades in a consistent manner," in a collection that mainly reflects the programming activity of the EDP Foundation and MAAT.
The collection, with works by artists from several generations, includes acquisitions linked to exhibitions, awards and the broader artistic context, according to the exhibition's presentation.
According to the curators, the exhibition was conceived "not as a single reflection, but as a game of mirrors or a kaleidoscope capable of giving meaning to the complexity and intersection of angles with which the reality of national creation is seen in this first quarter of the 21st century".
The works are distributed in a free layout, without a fixed script or claim to exhaustiveness, crossing languages developed by artists with consolidated careers, others in the process of establishing themselves and emerging artists, "in a logic of coexistence and dialogue between different creative positions," they point out.
"The intention is that each visitor, at each moment, feels the desire for truth, intensity and beauty that gave rise to this collection and this choice, and that each one perceives and enjoys seeing themselves in it," emphasise the curators about the route, which also features works by artists such as Maria Beatriz, Tiago Baptista, João Ferro Martins, João Pedro Vale and Nuno Ferreira, Sérgio Pombo and Rodrigo Oliveira.
"Turn around. A look at the EDP Foundation Art Collection" is presented as the first part of a larger exhibition project. The second part will open at MAAT Central on 29 April, "together constituting one of the most extensive exhibitions ever held from this collection".
During the exhibition, a book dedicated to the EDP Foundation Art Collection will be published, featuring works by 101 artists dating from 1959 to 2024, with editions in Portuguese and English and national distribution.
There are also plans to publish the book "Iss'eu também fazia" (I would do that too), written by Teatro Praga, in partnership with MAAT, aimed at children between the ages of seven and 12, a reading project with activities that combine artistic and civic education, inspired by the works in the collection.
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