The Portuguese creator will intervene in the rooms and gardens of the neoclassical palace, integrating her work into the history and space of the building, similar to what she did in 2012 at the Palace of Versailles, in Madrid, announced the Casa de Alba Foundation.

The Casa de Alba Foundation was established in 1973 by the Dukes of Alba, a Spanish aristocratic family, to carry out the conservation and dissemination of the family's historical and artistic legacy, which has an art collection that began in the 16th century.

Internationally recognised for her monumental sculptures and installations, some of a feminist nature, Joana Vasconcelos, according to the organisation, “will install some of her most iconic pieces and recent creations in the palace”, in dialogue with the private collection of Casa de Alba, which includes works by Spanish, Flemish and Italian masters such as Velázquez, Goya, Murillo, Rubens and Titian.

“With this intervention, the artist will occupy not only the gardens and halls of the palace, but also spaces that were previously not accessible to visitors, expanding the exhibition experience”, adds the Casa de Alba Foundation in the statement.

Joana Vasconcelos, born in 1971, has a career spanning more than three decades, which is characterised by the decontextualization of everyday objects and the appropriation of traditional crafts, which she adapts to the 21st century to question themes such as the role of women, the consumer society and cultural identity.

Vasconcelos officially represented Portugal at the Venice Art Biennale in 2013, taking a cacilheiro transformed into a work of art to the main venue of the contemporary international exhibition.

She was the first female artist and the youngest creator to present her work at the Palace of Versailles, in a solo exhibition, and has taken her production to institutions such as the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, the Pitti Palace and the Uffizi Galleries, among others.

Through exhibitions like the one planned for the Palácio da Liria, the Casa de Alba Foundation says it intends to implement a “policy of proximity and openness” defended by the current president, the 19th Duke of Alba, Carlos Fitz-James Stuart y Martínez de Irujo, to increase public access to the family’s historical heritage.