The Michelangelo Foundation’s Summer School Programme invites young creatives to discover metal in Portugal, 11-23 July 2021

· The metalworking courses are held at the Fundação Ricardo do Espírito Santo Silva ateliers in Lisbon and at the Loulé Criativo workshops in the Algarve
· The ten-day programme invites ten students from nine European countries to experience a diverse array of ancient metal crafts under the guidance of master craftspeople
· Collaborative contemporary works of art will result from the fruitful dialogue between the young designers, design mentors such as designer Sam Baron and master artisans, as ancient techniques are revisited and reinterpreted
· The programme’s mission is to promote and enable creative exchange, innovation and sustainable design through reimagining traditional metal techniques

The Summer School Programme is one of the foundation’s educational initiatives, which aim to fund and engage a young generation of talented creatives by providing opportunities to study crafts often endangered that are not included in mainstream educational training. By identifying areas of need, the impact is far reaching: broadening the horizons of emerging designers and artisans, ensuring the vital transmission of craft skills, and bringing innovation to traditional crafts through collaborative encounters. This circular approach aims to accelerate change by breathing new life into ancient crafts and inspiring the next generation of contemporary makers and designers, realising their potential as future participants in the foundation’s projects and as pathfinders in their fields.


This year’s course, entitled Metal in Loulé has been developed by the Michelangelo Foundation in partnership with Câmara Municipal de Loulé, Fundação Ricardo do Espírito Santo Silva and Passa Ao Futuro with the support of Altermind and is hosted by Loulé Criativo.

The ten participating students were selected following an open call, which received a large number of applications. The final group are from nine European countries: Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Italy, Latvia, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia and Spain. The first two days of the short course take place at the ateliers of Fundação Ricardo do Espírito Santo Silva (FRESS) in Lisbon discovering the metal working techniques of casting and tin work. Students then travel south to Loulé Criativo, a residency project established by the Loulé Municipal Council to explore the techniques of filigree, hammered copper, chiseling and metalwork. For the final week, students will each specialise in a different technique and then work together to bring their designs to life.

Chiselling is taught by Beatriz Canha, metalwork by Luis Figueiredo, tin work by Ivo Ferreira, hammered copper by Analide Carmo and Jürgen Cramer, and filigree by Conceição Neves. The course provides an invaluable opportunity for a younger generation to discover and learn about the age-old techniques, whilst simultaneously providing a chance for the masters of the craft to encounter new contemporary design visions, perspectives and ideas. This collaborative creative exchange will occur through the creation of joint objects, designed by the students in tandem with the master craftspeople. Overseeing the process are design mentors Henrique Ralheta and Fatima Durkee with guest designer Sam Baron and an inspirational visit to Made in Situ gallery by Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance. The contemporary objects will be handcrafted with the following themes in mind: time, value, resilience and material sustainability. The objective being that together the protagonists of the course think about the application of ancient metal craft techniques in the context of the 21st century and beyond, in order to create timeless and functional pieces to be appreciated for many generations to come.


Portuguese Product Design student, Hiago Teixeira expresses his thoughts on collaboration:

“The exchange between craftspeople, designers and architects is of fundamental importance for the evolution of the slow process of revaluing crafts and can certainly generate impactful results in society, in terms of consumption and production, on the economy and on the environment.”

A recent example of a successful creative collaboration is Portuguese tin worker José Viera’s partnership with German designer Christian Haas for Doppia Firma 2019, an initiative supported by the Michelangelo Foundation. The foundation is constantly seeking new ways to innovate old crafts and bring young and old generations together to ensure the future viability of crafts in contemporary culture.