Priscila Fernandes
Kolderveen, Drenthe, NL
priscila@priscilafernandes.net
Website design:
Chino Chano
Priscila Fernandes (1981, Portugal) is a visual artist and educator living and working in the Netherlands. Together with Edward Clydesdale Thomson, she is the Head of Department of the Bachelor of Fine Arts BEAR (Base for Experiment Art and Research) at ArtEZ, Arnhem.
Priscila Fernandes' work – installations, painting, photography, books – is rooted in an ongoing research into education, play, and the dialectics of work and leisure. Through a speculative and fictional approach, her work raises concrete questions about the idea of individual and collective freedom, especially in the context of the widespread precariousness of work in our society.
Priscila Fernandes studied at the National College of Art & Design (BA Fine Art Painting) in Dublin and at the Piet Zwart Institute (MA Fine Art) in Rotterdam. She was a resident artist at Künstlerhaus Bethanien in Berlin, IAPSIS Stockholm and at the Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin. Her work has been exhibited widely. Recent exhibitions include Live Uncertainty - 32nd São Paulo Biennial with the installation Cuckoo Land and Other Futures; The Book of Aesthetic Education of the Modern School at Foundation Joan Miró, Barcelona; Back to the sandbox: Art and Radical Pedagogy, Reykjavik Art Museum; Playgrounds, Museum Reina Sofia, Madrid; PIGS, Artium Basque Museum; Learning for Life, Henie-Onstad Kunstsenter, Oslo; 12 Contemporaries, Serralves Museum, Porto; Those bastards in caps come to have fun and relax by the seaside instead of continuing to work in the factory, at TENT, Rotterdam; and This is the time. This is the Record of the Time at Stedelijk Museum Bureau Amsterdam. She is the winner Brutus Award in 2018 (AVL Mundo, Rotterdam) and Prémio EDP Novos Artistas in 2011 (Fundação EDP, Lisbon).
- Education
- 2006, BA Fine Art Painting, National College of Art & Design, Dublin, Ireland
- 2010, MFA, Piet Zwart Institute, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- Residencies
- 2020, Happier than a Seagull with a French Fry, Hotel Maria Kapel, Hoorn, The Netherlands (cur. by Miriam Wistreich)
- 2018, Hangar, Lisbon, Portugal
- 2016, Instituto Buena Bista, Willemstad, Curaçao
- 2014, Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin, Ireland
- 2013, Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin, Germany
- 2013, BAR Projects at Fabra i Coats, Barcelona, Spain
- 2011, IASPIS, Stockholm, Sweden
- 2011, Prix de Rome, Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Solo Exhibitions
- 2023, What Horses Dream of, Tabakalera, Donostia - San Sebastian, Spain
- 2022, Make It Bounce, Sismógrafo, Porto, Portugal
- 2021, Leisure School / Escola de Lazer, CIAJG, Guimarães, Portugal (cur. by Marta Mestre)
- 2019, Brutus Award, AVL Mundo, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2018, Free. To do whatever we, Artissima, Turin, Italy
- 2018, Luísa Wedding, Galeria Fernando Santos, Porto, Portugal
- 2015, Those bastard in caps come to have fun and relax by the seaside instead of continuing to work in the factory., TENT, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2014, Ces salopards en casquettes venus se divertir et se reposer au bord de la mer au lieu de continuer à travailler à l'usine., PHAKT Centre Culturel Colombier, Rennes, France
- 2014, Against the Enamel, Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin, Germany
- 2014, ¿Y EL ARTE?, Espai13 - Fundació Joan Miró, Barcelona, Spain (cur. by uan Canela and Ane Agirre Loinaz)
- 2014, Against the Enamel, Temple Bar Gallery, Dublin, Ireland (cur. by Rayne Booth)
- 2013, Para um Mundo Melhor, Solar - Galeria de Arte Cinemática, Vila do Conde, Portugal
- 2012, Once Upon a Time No Longer, Apice for Artists, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- 2009, In Search of the Self, Cavanacor Gallery, Donegal, Ireland
- 2007, Drosophila Melanogaster, Four Gallery, Dublin, Ireland (cur. by Lee Welch)
- Group Exhibitions
- 2025, Inhale - Exhale, Into Nature Biennial, Drenthe Province, The Netherlands (cur. by Hilde de Bruijn)
- 2024, The Phantom of Liberty, Anozero Biennial, Coimbra, Portugal (cur. by Ángel Calvo Ulloa and Marta Mestre)
- 2023, SPRING NEVER COMES AGAING - Children & Art in the 20th & 21st century, Zachęta – National Gallery of Art, Warsaw, Poland (cur. by Joanna Kordjak)
- 2023, NON FINITO - Obras da Coleção de Arte Contemporânea do Estado, Centro de Cultura Contemporânea de Castelo Branco, Castelo Branco, Portugal (cur. by Fernando J. Ribeiro, Pedro Portugal and Beatriz Hilário)
- 2022, BROKEN PIÑATA, L21 LAB, Palma Mallorca, Spain (cur. by Francesco Giaveti)
- 2022, For What It's Worth, Garage, Rotterdam, The Netherlands (cur. by Youri Appelo)
- 2022, Playmode (itinerary exhibition), CCBB, Belo Horizonte, Brazil (cur. by Filipe Pais and Patricia Gouveia)
- 2021, All Makt Åt Fantasin - staden som lekplats, Konsthall C, Stockholm, Sweden (cur. by Ulrika Flink)
- 2020-2021, So Lazy. Elogio del derroche, Caixa Forum, Barcelona, Spain (cur. by Beatriz Escudero and Francesco Giaveri)
- 2020, Um Oasis ao Entardecer, MAAT, Lisbon, Portugal (cur. by Inês Grosso and Rosa Lleó)
- 2020, 12 Prémio Amadeo de Souza-Cardoso, Museu Amadeo de Souza-Cardoso, Amarante, Portugal
- 2020, Heavy Duty Paper, Division of Labour, UK
- 2019, Ver as vozes dos artistas, Several public spaces, Porto, Portugal (cur. by Miguel von Hafe Pérez)
- 2019, Gewoon bijzonder - Bijzonder gewoon (Extra)Ordinary, 38CC, Delft, The Netherlands
- 2019, Playmode, MAAT Museum, Lisbon, Portugal (cur. by Filipe Pais and Patricia Gouveia)
- 2019, Ponto de Fuga / Vanishing Point, Galerias Municipais, Galeria do Torreão Nascente da Cordoaria Nacional, Lisbon, Portugal (cur. by João Laia)
- 2019, An exhibition of posters by Maja Bekan, Kévin Bray, Chloe Dekanghe, Baldvin Einarsson, Priscila Fernandes, Vera Gulikers, An Onghena, Kevin Osepa, Josie Perry, Rory Pilgrim, Tramaine de Senna and Edward Clydesdale Thomson, Witte de With Contemporary Art Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2019, Couching Fiction, Roca Umbert, Granollers, Spain (cur. by Sergi Selvas)
- 2019, Kids, Škuc Gallery, Ljubljana, Slovenia (cur. by Maja Hodošček)
- 2019, Dolf Henkes Prijs, TENT., Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2018, An unstoppable force, Cobra Museum, Amstelveen, The Netherlands (cur. by Marie Stel)
- 2018, Les enfants d’abord, LiFE, Saint-Nazaire, France
- 2018, Back to the Sandbox - Art & Radical Pedagogy, Western Gallery, Washington, USA (cur. by Jaroslav Anděl)
- 2018, Kids, Center for Contemporary Arts Celje, Celje, Slovakia (cur. by Maja Hodošček)
- 2018, ARCO Lisboa, Galeria Fernando Santos, Lisbon, Portugal
- 2018, Art Rotterdam, Division of Labour, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2017, Movimento Contínuo, HANGAR, Lisbon, Portugal (cur. by Violeta Janeiro)
- 2017, Itinerância Incerteza Viva, Fundação Clovis Salgado, Palácio das Artes, Belo Horizonte, Brazil (cur. by Jochen Volts with Gabi Ngcobo, Júlia Rebouças, Lars Bang Larsen and Sofía Olascoaga)
- 2017, Itinerância Incerteza Viva, Serralves Museum, Porto, Portugal
- 2017, Coleção António Cachola, MACE, Elvas, Portugal (cur. by João Silvério)
- 2017, Terra, Solar, Vila do Conde, Portugal (cur. by Mário Micaelo)
- 2017, Free Play, Västerås Museum, Västerås, Sweden (cur. by Katrin Ingelstedt)
- 2017, Dreaming of Cockaigne, Het Wilde Weten, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2017, Lockers, Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, The Netherlands (cur. by Diego Diaz and Borja Llobregat)
- 2017, It's very new school, Rua Red Contemporary Art Centre, Tallagh, Dublin, Ireland (cur. by Jennie Guy)
- 2017, What I Am, MAAT, Lisbon, Portugal (cur. by Inês Grosso and Luiza Teixeira de Freitas)
- 2017, The Child as Teacher, Kunsthall Stavanger, Stavanger, Norway (cur. by Jaroslav Anděl)
- 2016, 32nd São Paulo Biennial, Biennial Pavillion, São Paulo, Brazil (cur. by Jochen Volts with Gabi Ngcobo, Júlia Rebouças, Lars Bang Larsen and Sofía Olascoaga)
- 2016, Millennials, Museum Arnhem, Arnhem, The Netherlands (cur. by Mirjam Westen)
- 2016, Games people play, NEST, Den Haag, The Netherlands
- 2016, Festival Chantiers d’Europe, Palais de Toyko,, Paris, France
- 2016, PIGS, Galeria Municipal Almeida Garrett, Porto, Portugal (cur. by Blanca de la Torre)
- 2016, Back to the sandbox: Art and Radical Pedagogy, Rekjavík Art Museum, Reykjavík, Iceland (cur. by Jaroslav Anděl)
- 2016, PIGS, Artium Basque Museum of Contemporary Art, Victoria, Spain (cur. by Blanca de la Torre)
- 2015, S'Wonderful, La Casa Encendida, Madrid, Spain (cur. by Beatriz Escudero)
- 2015, Priscila Fernandes, Jessica Stockholder and David Hanvald, Galerie Stadtpark, Krems an der Donau, Austria
- 2015, Social Choreography – an Ecology of Collective Experience, Tenderpixel, London, UK (cur. by Borbala Soos)
- 2014, Playgrounds, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid, Spain (cur. by Manuel J. Borja-Villel, Tamara Díaz and Teresa Velázquez)
- 2014, Playtime, Les Ateliers de Rennes, Bienniale d'art contemporain, Rennes, France (cur. by Zoë Gray)
- 2014, The Value of Nothing, TENT, Rotterdam, The Netherlands (cur. by Jesse van Oosten and Michel van Dartel)
- 2014, This is the Time. And this is the Record of the Time, SMBA, Amsterdam, The Netherlands (cur. by Nat Muller and Angela Harutyunyan)
- 2014, 12 Contemporâneos - Estados Presentes, Serralves Museum, Porto, Portugal (cur. by Suzanne Cotter and Bruno Marchand)
- 2013, An Opal World, Group exhibition with Rossella Biscotti, Priscila Fernandes, Jan Peter Hammer, and Alberto De Michele; Kunstraum, Kunstraum, London, UK
- 2013, Do you know because I tell you so or do you know, do you know?, Viafarini DOCVA, Milan, Italy (cur. by Valerio Del Baglivo)
- 2013, Uma Questão de Género, 1º Avenida, Porto, Portugal (cur. by Raquel Guerra)
- 2013, In-Discipline, Bonnefanten Roermond, Roermond, The Netherlands
- 2013, Jugada a 3 bandas, Gallery Liebre, Madrid, Spain (cur. by Marti Manen)
- 2012, The Return of the Object, Invaliden1, Berlin, Germany (cur. by Stefanie Hessler)
- 2012, Learning for Life, Henie-Onstad Kunstsenter, Høvikodden, Norway (cur. by one Hansen and Ane Hjort Guttu)
- 2012, Metamorphosis, PS2, Belfast, Ireland (cur. by Rowan Sexton)
- 2012, After the Future, EVA Biennial International, Ireland (cur. by Annie Fletcher)
- 2012, Abstract Possible: Stockholm Synergies, Tensta Konsthall, Sweden (cur. by Maria Lind)
- 2011, Screening Room: Dublin, Kölnischer Kunstverein, Cologne, Germany (cur. by Regina Barunke)
- 2011, Prémio EDP Novos Artistas, Museu da Electricidade, Lisbon, Portugal (cur. by João Pinharanda, Nuno Crespo and Delfim Sardo)
- 2011, Prix de Rome, SMART Project Space, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- 2010, Post Dordt, Centre for Contemporary Art Dordrecht, Dordrecht, The Netherlands (cur. by Maaike van de Wiel)
- 2010, Bosch Young Talent Show, AKV St. Joost, 's-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands (cur. by Monique Verhulst)
- 2010, If you say something, see something., TENT, Rotterdam, The Netherlands (cur. by Mai Abu Eldahab)
- 2009, It hits my hair, Wolfart, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2008, Luso-Phonia, Hangar, Barcelona, Spain (cur. by Catarina Simão)
- 2007, The Other Side of Real, Cavanacor Gallery, Donegal, Ireland
- 2007, Open Systems, Green on Red Gallery, Dublin, Ireland
- 2006, Launch/Making Do, The Lab, Dublin, Ireland (cur. by Paul O’Neill)
- 2006, it is a kind of magic, Ashford Gallery, Dublin, Ireland (cur. by Mark St. John Ellis)
- 2006, Wildbeaming, Sign Gallery, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Curatorial
- 2023, Floating, Kunstwerk Koldeveen, Kolderveen, The Netherlands
- 2018, Bo'i Palu, Het Wilde Weten, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2017, Dreaming of Cockaigne, Het Wilde Weten, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- Publications
- 2023, Rusted Armour, Skin of Dreams, Tabakalera, Donostia - San Sebastian, Spain
- 2023, Extra Extra No.20, Extra Extra, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2022, The Waterslide of Abstract Art, Sismógrafo, Porto, Portugal
- 2021, The Cookbook, Whatspace Foundation, The Netherlands
- 2021, Tubelight #116, Tubelight, The Netherlands
- 2020, Curriculum - Contemporary Art Goes to School, Intellect Books (cur. by Jennie Guy)
- 2019, Back to the Sandbox, University of Minnesota Press, USA (cur. by Jaroslav Anděl)
- 2018, DARDO Magazine, no. 33, Dardo, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
- 2015, Volume #45: Learning, Archis, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- 2015, On Boycott, Censorship and Educational Practices, De Appel Arts Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands (cur. by Renata Cervetto)
- 2014, ¿Y El Arte? – The Book of Aesthetic Education of the Modern School
- 2011, Lenticular Scorpions find Cheese on Mars, Espacio Abisal, Spain (cur. by Juan Canela)
- 2010, Virtual Fictional, Printed Project No. 13, Ireland (cur. by Kevin Atherton)
- 2010, If You Say Something, See Something, Piet Zwart Institute (cur. by Mai Abu Eldahab)
- Lectures
- 2023, Vasteras Museum
- 2020, Head of Department BEAR / Fine Art / ArtEZ, BEAR / ArtEZ University of the Arts, Arnhem, The Netherlands
- 2022, Erasmus University College / Boijmans Hillevliet, EUC / Boijmans Hillevliet, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2022, Laboratório Vivo, CIAJG, Guimarães, Portugal
- 2021, ArtEZ / Lecture at BEAR, BEAR Fine Art / ArtEZ University of the Arts, Arnhem, The Netherlands
- 2021, HKU, Hogeschool voor de Kunsten, Utrecht, The Netherlands
- 2021, Conversa de Artista, Serralves Museum, Porto, Portugal
- 2021, Artist in Conversation, MAAT Museum, Lisbon, Portugal
- 2014-2020, Tutor at Fine Art Department Gerrit Rietveld Academie, Gerrit Rietveld Academy, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- 2022, Artist in Conversation, Willem de Kooning Academy, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2015, The Book of Aesthetic Education of the Modern School, Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dubin, Ireland
- 2015, Conversas #38, Conversas, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2015, On Boycott, Censorship and Educational Practices, de Appel, Amsterdam, The Netherlands (cur. by Renata Cervetto)
- 2014, The Book of Aesthetic Education of the Modern School, Trafó Galéria, Budapest, Hungary
- 2014, Conversas com Artistas at the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Lisbon, FBAUL, Lisbon, Portugal
- 2013, Lecture and workshop - Master Education in Arts at Piet Zwart Institute, Piet Zwart Institute, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2013, The Forgotten Book - Lecture at Fundació Francisco Ferrer i Guàrdia, Fundació Francesc Ferrer i Guàrdia, Barcelona, Spain
- 2012, Guest Teacher at Gerrit Rietveld Academie, Gerrit Rietveld Academy, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- 2011, Priscila Fernandes with Anke Bangma, SMART Project Space, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- 2009, Priscila Fernandes, Kunstakademiet, Tromso, Norway
- 2009, On Representation, Open Office for Words, ADA, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2008, Scientific Aesthetics, Dún Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Dún Laoghaire, Ireland
- 2007, Priscila Fernandes, National College of Art & Design, Dublin, Ireland
- 2007, Showcase - Blurring Boundaries, the Lab, Dublin, Ireland
- Grants
- 2024, Kunstenaar Basis, Mondriaan Fonds, The Netherlands
- 2022, Makers Locket, Droom en Daad, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2021, Gulbenkian Foundation, Gulbekian Foundation, Lisbon, Portugal
- 2020, Tijl Fonds, Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds, The Netherlands
- 2019, Brutus Art Prize, AVL Mundo, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2016, Werkbijdrage Bewezen Talent, Mondriaan Fonds, The Netherlands
- 2016, Ontwikkeling- en Onderzoekssubsidie, Centrum Beeldende Kunst, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2014, Grant International Presentations, Mondriaan Fonds, The Netherlands
- 2013, Ontwikkeling- en Onderzoekssubsidie, Centrum Beeldende Kunst, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2012, Apoio à internacionalização - Artes Visuais - Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian, Portugal
- 2012, Mondriaan Fonds, Startstipendium, The Netherlands
- 2012, Ontwikkeling- en Onderzoekssubsidie, Centrum Beeldende Kunst, The Netherlands
- 2011, Winner of EDP Novos Artistas, Portugal
- 2011, Basisprijzen Prix de Rome, The Netherlands
- 2011, Fonds BKVB Buitenland ateliers (Iaspis), The Netherlands
- 2010, Fonds BKVB Startstipendium, The Netherlands
- 2009, Huygens Scholarship Programme, The Netherlands
- 2006, Henry Higgins Travelling Scholarship, Ireland
- Reviews
- 2020, Working on your tan: het productief nietsdoen van Priscila Fernandes in 'Happier than a Seagull with a French Fry', Metropolis M, The Netherlands (by Nadeche Remst)
- 2019, Tempo de Imaginar, Itaú Cultural, São Paulo, Brazil (by Tanja Baudoin)
- 2019, Ponto de Fuga / Vanishing Point, Contemporânea, Lisbon, Portugal (by José Marmeleira)
- 2018, Movimentos e ideias a caminho entre, DARDO Magazine, Spain (by Ángel Calvo Ulloa)
- 2016, New forms of agency, Spike Magazine (by Lars Bang Larsen)
- 2016, Millennials, by Loes van Beuningen, Metropolis M - nº5, The Netherlands
- 2016, A arte feira por mulheres é diferente?, Ipslon, Público,, Portugal (by Isabel Salema)
- 2016, A bienal de São Paulo é agora um jardim, Público, Portugal (by Isabel Salema)
- 2014, The Phanton of Liberty - History’s Intimate Others: The child and its play in contemporary art, Henie Onstad Kunstsenter and Sternberg Press (by Lars Bang Larsen)
- 2014, Priscila Fernandes faz escola em Barcelona, Público, PT, Público, Portugal
- 2014, Against The Enamel: An Interview with Priscila Fernandes, Totally Dublin, Ireland (by Rosa Abbott)
- 2014, Portugal 2014: mise au point, Vanessa Rato, Ípsilon, Público, 14th February 2014, PT (by Portugal)
- 2012, Once Upon A Time No Longer, Lost Painters, The Netherlands (by Niek Hendrik)
- 2012, På kjempers skuldre (The mighty shoulders), KUNST Forum, Norway (by Nicolai Strom-Olsen)
- 2012, Exit Limerick 2012, Limerick Reader, Ireland
- 2012, Exit Limerick 2012, Limerick Reader, Limerick, Rep. Ireland
- 2012, Aidan Dunne, EVA’s brawn feels familiar in Limerick, Irish Times, Ireland
- 2012, EVA’s brawn feels familiar in Limerick, Irish Times, Rep. Ireland (by Aidan Dunne)
- 2011, Pedro Faro, Figurações Científicas, Público, Portugal
- 2011, Chris Bors, Critics' Picks: Prix de Rome 2011, Artforum.com
- 2011, Machteld Leij, Prix de Rome 2011, Kunstbeeld, The Netherlands
- 2011, Henny de Lange, Weining elan dit keer bij Prix de Rome, Trouw, The Netherlands
- 2011, Koen Kleijn, Prix de Rome, de Groene Amsterdammer, The Netherlands
- 2011, Rutger Pontzen, Prix de Rome, Volkskrant, The Netherlands
- 2011, Raymond Boogaard, Prix de Rome Schetst Idyllische Wereld, NRC Handelsblad, The Netherlands
- 2010, Mike Sperlinger. Letter on a Brief, If you say something, see something, Piet Zwart Institute, The Netherlands
- 2008, Niall de Buitléar, Inspired by human curiosity: an interview with Priscila Fernandes, Circa Contemporary Art in Ireland, Ireland
- 2007, Tim Stott, Launch/Making Do., Circa Contemporary Art in Ireland, Ireland
- 2006, Abracadabra, Village Magazine, Ireland
- 2006, Aidan Dunne, A Challenge to the Conventional, The Irish Times, Ireland
- 2006, Aidan Dunne, Art Students Pile - The metaphors high, The Irish Times, Ireland
- Collections
- 2024, Fundação EDP Arte, Lisbon, Portugal
- 2022, Coleção de Arte Contemporânea do Estado, Portugal
- 2021, Arnhem Museum, The Netherlands
- 2018, NN Group, The Netherlands
- 2017, European Central Bank
- 2017, Serralves Museum, Porto, Portugal
- 2017, In4Art, The Netherlands
- 2014, Coleção António Cachola, Portugal
- 2013, RAM Foundation, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2012, Fundação EDP Arte, Lisbon, Portugal
- 2011, Fundation Bosch 500, The Netherlands
- 2010, Four, Dublin, Rep. Ireland
- 2010, Fundação Ilídio Pinho, Portugal
- 2010, Culturgest, Lisbon, Portugal