The second volume of the “Art and Community Notebooks” series published by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation discusses the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on participatory art projects in Portugal, highlighting the challenges faced and the creative responses generated.
In the author’s words, the text “stemmed from an urge to gather, record and share the broad range of experiences and learning triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic as it hit the projects that make up the third edition of the PARTIS initiative right in the midst of their creative development process”. Following the opening chapter entitled “A global crisis”, which provides an overview of the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the author shares and analyses the various responses from these projects to the challenges faced during the pandemic, identifying collective trends, expressing ideas and encouraging readers to reflect on and discuss issues affecting participatory art. The final chapter – “Reflections and learnings” – summarises the challenges, opportunities and conclusions drawn from this analysis.
The document also explores the impact of the pandemic on vulnerable populations and specific settings, such as detention facilities. Despite the challenges, projects demonstrated creativity, strong engagement, and the ability to adapt to new circumstances.
Overall, the document serves as a record of the collective efforts and reflections of the PARTIS III community during the unprecedented period of the pandemic, encouraging further reflection and debate on the role of participatory art in times of crisis.
