VIANA DO ALENTEJO, PORTUGAL
RESIDENCY OF PAINTED POTTERY, VIANA DO ALENTEJO
9th to 14th of MARCH, 2026
about the RESIDENCY
In 2018, Astrid Suzano and Fatima Durkee, founders of Passa Ao Futuro, visited Viana do Alentejo as part of the mapping of traditional arts and crafts that the association began in 2016. It was then that they met the last family of potters still active in this picturesque Alentejo village.
This first contact revealed the need to innovate in order to allow this ancestral craft to reach new markets that would properly value it, thereby ensuring the economic sustainability of the local potteries.
Passa Ao Futuro then invited Vicara — which was dissolved in 2024 — to become a commercial partner and, together, they launched the Painted Pottery Creative Residencies project (TASCO - Viana do Alentejo), whose first edition took place in July 2021.
Four designers - Mantraste, Mariana, A Miserável, Mariana Malhão and José Torres - were invited to work in Viana do Alentejo with Olaria Feliciano Agostinho (father) and Olaria Mira Agostinho (son). This collaboration resulted in a series of traditional red clay pieces — such as bowls, jugs, water pitchers and plates, among others — reinterpreted through the decoration developed by the designers in residence.
After the conclusion of the residency, the pieces went into production at both potteries, with a view to their promotion and commercialisation, contributing to the sustainable development of a millenary craft.
Since then, two more editions have taken place, in 2022 and 2023, and the residency has established itself as an important source of income for both potteries.
Despite the dissolution of Vicara, Passa Ao Futuro now intends to resume the project independently by organising a new residency between 9th and 14th of March 2026, in order to continue the work developed with Olaria Feliciano Agostinho and Olaria Mira Agostinho.
Stay tuned for more information!
The Artisans
FELECIANO BRANCO AGOSTINHO
Son of potter, he has been in contact with this craft from an early age. In addition to pottery, Feleciano studied mural painting and drawing, in the industrial school he attended for three years. Pottery was his favorite course. He finished school in 1956, he then went to work with his father until he joined the army, after which, he returned to his homeland to continue his craft. In 1982 he opened his own workshop where he had 14 people working with him. They made alguidares, pots, barrels, vases, alcatruzes, etc. At that time, he also hired several women to do traditional decorative painting. Feleciano does not paint the pieces he does but, very proudly, says that it was he who draws the patterns they painted. Nowadays he works alone on the wheel and has a few women working with him decorating the pieces under his instruction.
FELICIANO AGOSTINHO and ROSA MIRA AGOSTINHO
Feliciano, worked in the father's workshop for almost 20 years. It was with him and his grandfather who learned to make traditional pottery at the age of 13. In 2004 he opened the Olaria Mira Agostinho along with the woman, Rosa Mira Agostinho, where they divide the tasks according to tradition: Feliciano is the potter and Rosa paints, she is an artist at heart and trains other ceramic painters in the region. Together they make a wide variety of utility and decorative pieces. They are both interested in experimenting with new techniques and designs.
THE DESIGNERS
CAROLINA CELAS
Carolina Celas lives and works in Lisbon. She graduated in Design and later completed a Master’s degree in Visual Communication in London. Since then, she has worked as a freelance illustrator across different media. The poetry and harmony present in her work invite children and adults to perceive boundless places, exploring detail, humor, and the surreal through natural and spatial elements. She is internationally recognized and published, having participated in several solo and group exhibitions.
CÉLIA ESTEVES
Célia Esteves, born in Viana do Castelo in 1981, lives and works in Porto. She holds a Master’s degree in Drawing and Printmaking Techniques from FBAUP and a Bachelor’s degree in Communication Design from ESAD. She worked as a technician in the FBAUP Printmaking workshops (2007–2012) and founded Rug by GUR in 2012. Through this brand, she collaborates with artists and illustrators to reinvent traditional Portuguese rugs. She has participated in national and international exhibitions and projects.
CLÁUDIA LANCASTER
Claudia Lancaster, from Almada, works as a graphic designer and moves within artistic and cultural contexts, seeking to engage with different ways of being, imagining, and reflecting. Manuality is present in her work and experience, with gesture playing an important role in graphic development.
NICOLAU
Nicolau, from Cerveira, 1986, has produced graphic design and illustration work for clients such as Kosmicare, Abraço, Quercus, Casa da Música, Bibliotecas de Lisboa, Esporão, and Culturgest, among many others. Through the publisher Pato Lógico, he illustrated two award-winning books. He has been researching playful and collaborative drawing, both in Desenháculo (live drawn dialogues) and in workshops with adults and children. In music, he is part of doismileoito, has accompanied Nuno Prata live, and released Território Marcha Lenta (2024) as Domenico Laudas. Together with Joana Estrela, he created the animated-forms piece Dois Ratos, a co-production of Lu.Ca Teatro Luís de Camões, combining drawing, narrative, music, and songwriting.
TEAM
Curatorship, artistic direction and follow up - Astrid Suzano
Production & follow up - João Xará
Photo & video - Inês Silva Sá
Graphic Design - Catarina Carreiras
PR - O Apartamento
