The Lisbonaire Spotlight Vasco Fragoso Mendes
27 — 31 May
09:00 — 20:00
Sunday 09:00 - 18:00
LDW Highlights
For Lisbon Design Week 2026, Vasco Fragoso Mendes presents an exhibition that traces his journey as an artist, designer and maker, from early explorations to his most recent works.
This exhibition unfolds as a chronological and material narrative. Rather than focusing on a single collection, it brings together drawings, sketches, prototypes and finished pieces that reveal the process behind the practice. Visitors are invited to move through different moments of Vasco’s trajectory, witnessing how intuition becomes structure, how experimentation becomes language, and how ideas evolve into objects.
The presentation highlights the importance of making as a way of thinking. Early drawings and conceptual studies show the foundations of his visual vocabulary, while prototypes expose the trial and error that shapes each piece. Alongside these developmental works, selected finished objects demonstrate the refinement of form, material sensitivity and craftsmanship that define his current practice.
At its core, the exhibition reflects on growth. It reveals continuity and transformation, recurring themes and unexpected shifts. By placing process and outcome side by side, Vasco opens his studio practice to the public, offering transparency into the discipline, curiosity and persistence behind each work.
Set within an intimate basement space, the exhibition encourages close observation. Visitors can engage with textures, construction details and subtle gestures that might otherwise remain unseen. The experience is both reflective and immersive, inviting audiences to consider design not only as a final object, but as an ongoing journey shaped by time, learning and making.
Through this body of work, Vasco Fragoso Mendes presents a portrait of evolution, one that honours origins while embracing present clarity and future direction.
This exhibition is part of LDW26 “Spotlight Section”.
The Lisbonaire itself is a design-led residence housed in a renovated 1960s building, known for integrating Portuguese art, typography and architecture into everyday living. Extending this ethos below ground, the basement functions as a flexible presentation space where material experimentation, craftsmanship and conceptual work can unfold with clarity.
Defined by its raw architectural character and quiet spatial presence, the basement allows exhibitions to feel immersive and intentional. Its scale encourages proximity between audience and work, fostering reflection and conversation. During Lisbon Design Week, the space becomes a platform for exchange between Vasco Fragoso Mendes, local and international visitors and the broader design community.
