Carnation Revolution – 50 Years of Freedom

Carnation Revolution – 50 Years of Freedom was a contemporary art exhibition project celebrating the Carnation Revolution of 25 April 1974, a defining moment in Portuguese history that marked the transition from dictatorship to democracy.

Conceived as a transdisciplinary and immersive project, it engaged with the social, political, and cultural collective memory of Portugal and Europe from the 1960s to the present day, unfolding as a polyphony of voices, artistic media, and historical interpretations, reflected in the diversity of participating artists.

The exhibition took place across multiple venues in Braga, weaving through the city’s urban fabric: the Regimento de Cavalaria No. 6, the Nogueira da Silva Museum, and Forum Arte Braga. It presented a wide range of materials, including documentary films, photographic archives, books, magazines, and posters, in dialogue with new artistic commissions and historical works from major contemporary art collections.

The project featured 130 artists and more than 250 works, many of which belong to some of the most important contemporary art collections in Portugal, including the State Contemporary Art Collection (CACE), the Museum of Neo-Realism, and the Serralves Foundation, among other national and international institutions.

Carnation Revolution – 50 Years of Freedom also initiated a broader Iberian dialogue, which continued with the exhibition Inquietud. Libertad y Democracia, curated by Paulo Mendes and Sandra Vieira Jürgens and later presented in Madrid at La Casa Encendida.

This project constituted a space for critical reflection and confrontation with history. It affirms the importance of ensuring that new generations in Portugal and Europe carry the memory of the past into the present, as a means of shaping a shared and democratic future. Freedom and democracy must be continuously built and defended.

Curator: Paulo Mendes

Exhibition participants included: Alberto Carneiro, Alfredo Cunha, Álvaro Cunhal, Álvaro Lapa, Ana Hatherly, Ana Jotta, Ângela Berlinde, Ângela Ferreira, Ângelo de Sousa, Anna Bella Geiger, Anna Daučíková, Anna Jermolaewa, António Aragão, António Areal, António Barros, António Olaio, António Poppe, António Rego, Arlindo Silva, Armando Azevedo, Augusto Brázio, Axel Stockburger, Bartolomeu Cid dos Santos, Bárbara Fonte, Berna Reale, Brígida Mendes, Ção Pestana, Carla Castiajo, Carla Filipe, Catarina Simão, Clara Menéres, Claudia Claremi, Cristina Mateus, Daniel Barroca, Délio Jasse, E. M. de Melo e Castro, Eduardo Arroyo, Eduardo Batarda, Equipo Crónica, Ernesto de Sousa, Fábio Colaço, Fernando José Pereira, Fernando J. Ribeiro, Fernando Lemos, Fernando Sánchez Castillo, Fernão Cruz, Filipa César, Francisco Queirós, Francisco Vidal, Harun Farocki, Horácio Frutuoso, Hugo Canoilas, Hugo de Almeida Pinho, Inês Leal, Isabel Ribeiro, Jimmie Durham, João Maria Gusmão + Pedro Paiva, João Onofre, João Pedro Vale + Nuno Alexandre Ferreira, João Tabarra, Joaquim Rodrigo, Jonathas de Andrade, Jorge Pinheiro, Jorge Vieira, José de Almeida Pereira, José de Guimarães, José Dias Coelho, José Feitor, José Luís Neto, Josef Dabernig and Markus Scherer, Józef Robakowski, Júlio Pomar, Kiluanji Kia Henda, Leonel Moura, Leopold Kessler, Lima de Freitas, Maja Bajevic, Manoel Barbosa, Manolo Millares, Manuel Alvess, Manuel Botelho, Manuel Figueira, Manuel Santos Maia, Maria Barreira, Maria Helena Vieira da Silva, Maria José Aguiar, Mariana Gomes, Mário Cesariny, Miguel Carneiro, Miguel Leal, Miguel Palma, Mladen Stilinović, Musa Paradisíaca, Neal Slavin, Nikias Skapinakis, Nikolai Nekh, Nuno Nunes-Ferreira, Nuno Ramalho, Oficina Arara, Patrícia Almeida, Paula Rego, Paulo Catrica, Paulo Mendes, Paulo Nozolino, Paulo Seabra, Pedra No Rim, Pedro Cabral Santo, Pedro Costa, Pedro Gomes, Pedro Infante, Pedro Tudela, Priscila Fernandes, Rita GT, R.E.P. Group, Rosângela Rennó, Rui Filipe, Sanja Iveković, Santiago Sierra & Jorge Galindo, Sara & André, Sobral Centeno, Susana Mendes Silva, Tiago Baptista, Tibor Hajas, Tito Mouraz, VALIE EXPORT, Valter Vinagre, Vasco Araújo, Vasco Pereira da Conceição, Victor Palla, Yonamine.

Partners

Innovarisk Seguros MDS Corretor de Seguros SA, Exército de Portugal/Regimento de Cavalaria n.º 6, Forum Arte Braga, Museu Nogueira da Silva, Ministério da Cultura/ Museus e Monumentos de Portugal/ Coleção de Arte Contemporânea do Estado, Fundação de Serralves, Museu do Neorealismo, Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo, Embaixada de Espanha em Portugal, La Casa Encendida; Lucky Star – Cineclube de Braga; Comemorações dos 50 anos do 25 de Abril