"A palaver é o lugar"
As part of the celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the Portuguese Constitution, the 50 Years of 25 April Commemorative Commission, in partnership with the Assembly of the Republic*, is organizing the exhibition The word is the place - the Constitution of the Community(ies) [A palavra é o lugar - a Constituição da(s) Comunidade(s)], to open on 23 July 2026 and remain on view until the end of November.

We are made of words. Through them we give meaning to our days, narrate the past, imagine futures, and create communities. The Constitution, itself made of words, holds this founding power: to constitute, to build, and to open the place we inhabit together. As Hannah Arendt wrote, politics is the realm of speech and freedom. To reflect on the 50 years of the Constitution is to reflect on the performative power of the word, particularly in a time marked by distrust in its truth. Language is never neutral: it is a field of struggle, a site of creation and transformation. This exhibition-essay brings together artists whose work engages with language as medium, inviting us to consider the Constitution as a beacon and guarantor of rights and duties.

Curators: Francisca Listopad, Filipa Oliveira, Paulo Pires do Vale
Photos: Assembleia de Republica

"Matrices/Assises (Democracia)" 10 elements, resin, 2026, special edition for the 50th anniversary of the Portuguese Constitution

with among others artists, Angela Ferreira, Fernanda Fragateriro, Joao Pedro Vale e Nuno Alexandre Ferreira, Emilia Nadal, Dora Garcia; Hugo Canoilas, Ana Hatherly, Maria José Oliveira, Binelde Hyrcan, Sarah & André, Nuno Nunes-Ferreira

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