CREATIVE LISBON: 6 EVENTS THIS JULY

1. O Jardim de Verão @ the Gulbenkian, until July 7th.

A curated series of music, conversations, and film scattered across the iconic Gulbenkian, from its outdoor concrete amphitheatre to its landscaped gardens, set against the backdrop of its brutalist structure. Entirely free.

‘This edition of Jardim de Verão once again celebrates the sounds and rhythms of various cultures, presenting, in addition to music, stories and testimonies that are also expressed through images and words.

In the year in which such important dates as the 50th anniversary of the 25th of April and the 100th anniversary of the birth of Amílcar Cabral are celebrated, Jardim de Verão rehearses the art of telling difficult stories and experimenting with poetic dialogues, carriers of solidarity and future.

This year the curatorship is by Dino D'Santiago (music), Maíra Zenun (cinema) and Kalaf Epalanga (conversations).’

2. Yoga at the Museum: Waves of Tranquility; Open Sea Exhibition by Nicolas Floc'h @ MAAT, Various Dates

Yoga meets art with the MAAT’s series of sessions ‘Yoga at the Museum’, exploring nature and the yogic body through a combination of movement and artistic observation.

‘In the tantric tradition, the concept of the "yogic body" represents a micro-scale manifestation of the macro-scale universe. Within this body, there are elements such as oceans, rivers, flora, fauna and even prophetic figures.

In these sessions, participants are invited to explore a variety of ancient and contemporary postures, as well as fluid movements designed to direct the "luminous cognition" of yoga towards animal, plant and mineral entities. Immersed in Nicolas Floc'h's exhibition Mar Adentro, we will start by observing his underwater photographic landscapes, to the traditional visualization of the yogic body and its classification of asanas (postures).’

3. Stunning by Ana Pérez-Quiroga @ No No Gallery until July 26th

An exhibition interrogating the female understanding of love by Ana Pérez-Quiroga, an activist for gender equality. Combining installation, sculpture, and contemporary pieces, Stunning describes itself as an ‘ode to love’.

‘Theorists such as Plato and Aristotle shaped the Western understanding of love, imposing their own experiences and beliefs, without women’s perspectives being considered. Ana Pérez-Quiroga, an artist active in the movements that have fought for gender equality since the 19th century, through theoretical and practical research, once again reaffirms the exploration of the concept of sentimental love from a feminist perspective. (…) Estonteante, the title of the neon that names the exhibition, is an ode to love, proposing a vision that points to forms of affection that promote equity and freedom.’

4. Ah, Amália! Living Experience @ 8 Marvilla

Experience Amália, the beloved queen of fado who is integral to the fabric of Portuguese musical and cultural heritage. Navigating the artist's material and immaterial collection, using period scenography and interactive content, the Living Experience is a fusion of the physical and the technological.

‘Amália is inspiration, she is poetry. It's a strange form of life. “Fado is not sung – it happens.” She said. And Amália doesn't count. Inhale, exhale. And she lives.

Revolutionary and charming, eternal and ethereal, Amália is the portrait of Fado and of an imaginary that captivates the entire world. Amália transcends matter, lives in everyone's references, in the history of a culture and in the representation of a people.

Enter the life of an inspiring woman and discover all her depth, in an innovative, interactive and absolutely sensorial way.’

5. Pride March from Marquês de Pombal to Terreiro do Paço, July 6th

Winding its way down Avenida da Liberdade and on to Terreiro do Paço, Lisbon’s Pride March is a celebration of LGBTQ+ communities and a rallying cry for equal rights. Expect live music and drag performances upon reaching the square.

6. Europe Through The Lens of Black Women @ The Gulbenkian, July 6th

Exploring identity in Europe from the perspectives of black women, this film series gives a voice to the lived experience of the female African diaspora on the continent.

‘The film cycle Africanities and Their Human Landscapes brings to the Summer Garden a selection of nine fiction films, divided into three sessions.

The third and final session of this cycle features two films produced by people from the African diaspora in Europe, promoting a reflection on film, power, poetics, black women, the politics of affections and colonial continuities.

Refusing to tell stories that reinforce stereotypes, these films propose a contextualisation of the current European reality from the opposing and accurate viewpoint of different black women who share similar experiences and visions around the legacies of the present.’