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Contribution short abstract:

This presentation follows the study of the practice of clay figuration in Portugal. Through a detailed ethnographic study we reveal a view of contemporary Portuguese crafts simultaneously political and aesthetic.

Contribution long abstract:

This presentation follows the study of the practice of clay figuration in Portugal. The ethnographic work was carried out in coordination with Public Institute of Cultural Heritage (Património Cultural - Instituto Público) and aimed to inform the cultural policies of Intangible Cultural Heritage in the arts and crafts. The main outlines of the research converge to understand the current state of the crafts in Portugal, through the detailed study of the practice of clay figuration. We started by investigating the long-term effects of the institutionalisation of crafts, largely delimited by the ethnographic representations of the 19th century and its exploitation by the Estado Novo dictatorship in the 1930s and 1940s, noticing how this is still visible in the social and political dynamics currently taking place in the two areas studied - Barcelos and Estremoz. Next, we examined the traditional knowledge of this practice, noticing how the artisans address and negotiate the intricacy of the different scales, temporalities and narratives present in the work, by balancing the preservation of the traditional themes transmitted by their ancestors, with the introduction of new forms and ideas during the figure making process. We also observed how their work caught the attention of contemporary artists and designers, inspiring creative relationships as well as their own clay figuration practice. The work apprehends the defining aspects of the practice and reveals a view of contemporary Portuguese crafts simultaneously political and aesthetic.