ISABEL CARVALHO

Arder a Palavra
14.02.2026
—02.05.2026

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In Arder a Palavra, Isabel Carvalho presents a set of ceramic panels resulting from research that combines science and artistic practice, reviving traditional knowledge in which vegetal ashes were used in the formulation of ceramic glazes. The ashes chosen for the project were mainly collected in areas affected by the fires that occurred during the summer of 2025 in the Douro region, one of the areas that suffered the greatest environmental impact that year.

The research initially focused on the behaviour of vegetal material in vitrification processes, analysing how different species — such as oak, pine and eucalyptus, present in varying proportions according to their flammability — produced specific ceramic responses. However, the work gradually shifted in another direction, based on practice and the realisation that, in a real context, the strict separation of species proves to be chimerical outside laboratory conditions. The contamination between materials — since fire indiscriminately converts all “living” matter into ashes — as well as the subsequent impregnation of the air, soil and waterways, became a structural part of the project itself.










Lugar do Desenho — Fundação Júlio Resende, Valbom, Gondomar 

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