From the Mine to Stage: the seed of the 2026 Community Show

photography ©Sónia Godinho

Now that we have recovered from the emotions experienced during the MALACATE 2025 Artistic Residency , it is time to stop, breathe and share what remains of these two intense weeks of creation, encounter and discovery at Mina de S. Domingos .

Between June 1st and 14th , we welcomed the artistic structures CAMA, MEIO DO MATO and OCRE , invited to immerse themselves in the territory to develop artistic proposals in dialogue with its history, landscape and community. This residency marks the beginning of the creative process that will culminate in the community show MALACATE 2026 .

The tour began with the Artists’ Reception Programme , which provided an in-depth first contact with the place and its inhabitants. During these days, we visited the Mining Complex , Achada do Gamo , the Agroecology and Regeneration Centre – Terra Sintrópica , the Historic Centre of Mértola and the Convent of S. Francisco , where we were welcomed by the dancer Geraldine Zwanikken . We also took a nighttime stroll to observe the stars and took part in the guided tour RETRATO , a collective creation with the local community.

photographs: 1 and 4 ©Sónia Godinho / 2 ©SkyAlqueva / 3 ©Beatriz Sousa

The residency took place in a spirit of listening, experimentation and ongoing dialogue between the artists and the territory. On June 14 , the Cineteatro da Mina de S. Domingos hosted the public presentation of the three proposals developed. This symbolic moment was followed by the decision of the MALACATE Council — a community curation group — which chose the MEIO DO MATO structure proposal to be further developed and explored throughout 2026, in collaboration with the community.

photographs © Margarida Azevedo

The MALACATE Artistic Residency thus asserts itself as the heart of our 2025 Season — a meeting space where art and territory intertwine with listening, care and creativity.

To all who have been part of this journey: our deepest gratitude. The journey continues — and so does creation.

📖 More about the project and the full MALACATE Season schedule at: www.cepatorta.org/malacate