The theme Alter-Realities: Designing the Present, proposed by the chief curator Alastair Fuad-Luke, materialised in a series of exhibitions, workshops, installations and conversations that brought more than 8,600 visitors to the cities of Porto and Matosinhos, and online, where the Peripheral Perspectives colloquium, the podcast Voices from the Atelier and the Wild Talks dialogues added up to around 12,800 views. France, guest country of the second edition of the Porto Design Biennale, had a dedicated programme developed by the curators Caroline Naphegy and Sam Baron in partnership with the Institut français du Portugal and the French Embassy in Portugal.
The main axis of Alastair Fuad-Luke's curatorship, the Museum of Vibrant Matter drew attention to all living things - through an exhibition and three workshops - seeking to encourage citizens and designers to build alternative relationships for the future. The exhibition also drew on cultural memories and material experiences to reactivate and build an Archive of Vibrant Matter in partnership with local designers, experts and citizens. The archive subsequently travelled to Ferrol, marking the first iteration of the Archive in Spain.
The biennale's programmatic circuit was also marked by the exhibition Wild Care which occupied the Museu da Cidade, Palacete Viscondes de Balsemão, Triplex Porto with a collection of love stories, correspondence and commitment curated by Ana Jara and Alberto Altés. At Campo 24 de Agosto metro station, in Porto, it was possible to see the installation Liminal Ghettos by Carlo Ratti Associatti, in partnership with MIT Senseable City Labs, about the invisible "fault lines" of the city.
From the main programme, to the eight satellite activities and four constellations of this edition, social design marked the event with initiatives that built bases for an alternative present punctuated by the idea of care, regeneration and change. We highlight, as an example, the work of the Habitar 424 programme which, led by Assemble Studio and El Warcha, was developed for and by Porto's homeless community with the aim of providing growing community resources for the future.
The Porto Design Biennale is promoted by the Porto City Council and the Matosinhos City Council and organised by esad-idea, Research in Design and Art, a reflection of the growing interest in the design discipline.
The next edition of the Porto Design Biennale will take place in 2023.
