Here There – Here There

The first phase of the project took place between February and March 2025, when seven artist-managers from São Paulo undertook a residency in Madrid. For a month, they lived and worked alongside their Madrid counterparts in the Ey!Studio, Malafama, Nave Oporto, and 35.000 Jóvenes workshops, participated in several public forums, and forged professional connections with other spaces in the city.

Between July and September, eleven artists from Madrid traveled to São Paulo to continue the exchange at the Hermes, Fonte, Canteiro, and Ateliê Fidalga spaces. This second phase not only strengthened ties among the participants and connected them with other cultural spaces in São Paulo, but also highlighted the practical value of the exchange as a tool for mutual learning. In particular, the Madrid spaces were able to observe firsthand the strategies developed by the São Paulo collectives, which, operating for years with limited public support, have cultivated sustained forms of mutual care, space activation, and truly autonomous management models. This contrast offered concrete insights for rethinking local practices and strengthening the sustainability of self-managed spaces in Madrid.

HERE THERE HERE THERE It also coincided with the 36th São Paulo Biennial, which considerably amplified its international visibility. The project culminated in a group exhibition in São Paulo featuring the 18 participating artists, presented simultaneously in the four spaces involved.

Participating in the project and the final exhibition: Albano Afonso and Sandra Cinto (Ateliê Fidalga), Ivan Padovani (Canteiro), Carla Chaim and Daniela Torrente (Hermes Artes Visuais), Marcelo Amorim and Osiel Magalhães da Conceição (Fonte); Alfonso Fernández and Begonya García (#Ey!Studio), Carlos Aires (Malafama), Elvira Amor and María Tolmos (Nave Oporto), Valeria Maculan and Cristina Mejías (35,000 young people), Raúl Díaz Reyes, Carlos Maciá and Fuentesal Arenillas.