In-cóg-ni-tas (n.f.). Mulheres, migrações e artivismo na sociedade portuguesa contemporânea

Abstract

This article represents a reflection around the round table organized in the scope of the III International COMbART Conference. Starting from a visual and content analysis of the artworks of three women artists, with an migrant trajectory, we seek to deepen a discussion based on three pillars: art, women's migration and artivism. The focus on these three analytical axes has to do with the fact that we aim to put into perspective some processes of identity-cultural reconstruction, having as a starting point an artistic practice, namely visual arts, and dance. For a long time, migrant women have been seen as mere passive agents, not being expected to have an interest for the most diverse artistic-cultural expressions and, in this sense, this article is a theoretical and empirical contribution that aims to demystify these imaginaries that tend to characterize migrant women as an invisible face of contemporary societies. Thus, we intend to demonstrate the transformative potential of the cultural and artistic productions of three women with a migration background, as well as to show that the arts can be a weapon, i.e. an effective means to transform contemporary societies.