Shifting ground—Outro chão: Creating a space of inclusion and democratic participation through social art and design

Abstract

Abstract: Shifting—Ground Outro Chão is a hybrid social art and design project aiming to create ceramic sculptures involving newcomer immigrants with the support of local stakeholders and public funding. The project’s first pair of workshops occurred in 2019 in Cedar Rapids (Iowa, US), followed by another workshop in 2021 that was developed in Lisbon and Montemor-o-Novo (Portugal). This latter is the background to present the creative process we have been experimenting with in collaboration with Jane Gilmor, an American artist based in Cedar Rapids and newcomer immigrants to Portugal. The implemented participatory process is based on ceramic sculpture workshops and the representation of memories and ambitions related to the immigrants’ cultural heritage and skills. The paper explores the methodology and methods within the co-creative work with all actors involved and particular notions of space and time, according to Doreen Massey, Henri Lefebvre, and Tania Bruguera.