The duo Miguel Teodoro & Shuang Xu is the winner of the OpenCall for the UmbigoLAB @ Loulé Criativo artistic residency

article

DATE

22 Dec 2025

AUTHOR

Umbigo

The duo Miguel Teodoro & Shuang Xu is the winner of the OpenCall for the UmbigoLAB @ Loulé Criativo artistic residency

AUTHOR

Umbigo

According to the decision of the Jury – consisting of Umbigo, Loulé Criativo, Fundação Millenium bcp, Filipa Oliveira (MNAC), and Caio Marcolini (winner of the previous edition of the UmbigoLAB @ Loulé Criativo residency) – among the many excellent eligible applications, the proposal by Miguel Teodoro and Shuang Xu stood out for several reasons, including their in-depth research into the territory and materials of Palma (dwarf palm leaf) and Esparto, and their exploration of the intersection between tradition, cultural heritage, and the local community of Loulé and their own personal narrative.

The artists will thus ensure a dialogue between different contexts and the experimental possibility that the artistic residency offers in terms of research work. The proposal also stands out for its attention to the process of treating these plant fibers, from the moment of cultivation, and for the construction of an archive of documentation relevant to the extinction and fragility of this tradition.

Alongside a carefully planned schedule and a proposal for a workshop to be held at the end of the residency, their proposal also ensures an open-ended outcome—an important condition in the evaluation of applications—which can significantly benefit the final formalization and construction of the work.

Miguel Teodoro (b. 1997) develops an artistic practice that crosses various themes and disciplines, focusing his thinking on the relationship between materiality, geopolitics, ecology, and visual culture through site-responsive multimedia interventions. He holds a degree in Fine Arts from the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Porto (2019) and also studied at the Akademie der Bildenden Künste in Vienna (2018/19). In 2023, he completed a master's degree in Geo-Design at the Design Academy Eindhoven. He frequently participates in exhibitions and collective projects, publications, artistic residencies, and international research projects. Of particular note is his participation in the exhibition Interspecies (2025), presented at the MAC/CCB Architecture Center, and in Metabolisms of Repair, an exhibition presented as part of the Portuguese representation at the London Design Biennale. He is a co-founder and active member of the Pousio and FIELD collectives. Since 2021, he has coordinated “Hiperlocal – platform for practices situated between art and ecology” at the Mnemonic Pavilion in the Viana do Castelo Urban Ecological Park.

Shuang Xu is a multidisciplinary artist, designer, and researcher who explores cultural narratives, situated landscapes, and migrant histories, using symbolic elements as guides for her research, storytelling, and artistic practices. She completed a bachelor's degree in Communication Design at Swinburne University in 2019 and, in 2023, she will complete a master's degree in Ecology Futures at St. Joost School of Art & Design in Den Bosch. Guided by a belief in situated learning and fieldwork methodology, Shuang Xu presents her research through gastronomic performances, installations, and graphic forms. Among her recent projects, her participation in the collective exhibition Um Sítio Onde Pousar a Cabeça (2025), presented at Olaria Municipal Odemira, and in the parallel public program of the exhibition FUNGI: Anarchist Designers (2025), presented at Het Nieuwe Instituut in Rotterdam, curated by Anna Tsing & Feifei Zhou, stands out.

The duo will now have at their disposal a considerable wealth of knowledge, techniques, and materials, which may dictate new directions in their artistic research and practices, while also taking advantage of the territorial integration that the residency fosters.

Umbigo and Loulé Criativo would like to thank the juries and all the artists who participated in this call, wishing everyone the best of luck for the future.