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Artist Statement

Adalgisa Lizel Da Conceição Mendes

My practice explores memory, identity, healing, and transformation through the combined use of ceramics and fibre. I am interested in how materials can hold emotional experiences and give physical form to what is often left unspoken. Working with clay and fibre allows me to explore the relationship between strength and softness, permanence and vulnerability, creating sculptural forms that embody both personal and collective memory. Much of my work draws from my childhood experiences of absence, silence, and family relationships.  These lived experiences have shaped the way I understand space, belonging, and identity. In ‘A Casa do Silêncio’, I recreate playground tunnels and enclosed spaces as symbols of self-reflection, refuge, and emotional survival. Clay provides structure and sustainability, while fibre carries softness, connection, and the emotional weight of what could not be expressed. Together, these materials become a visual language through which silence is transformed into presence. As a young Black woman, making is an act of healing. My practice is a way of revisiting the past while creating space for growth and renewal. Through ceramics and fibre, I seek to transform memory experiences into material and invite viewers to consider how personal stories, through deeply individual, can also become shared experiences of resilience, connection, and hope.