Lisbon’s MAAT – Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology unveils Poetic Earth, a major exhibition by Anna Maria Maiolino, on view through 31 August 2026. Spanning five decades of work, this is the artist’s first solo museum show in Portugal—and it arrives fresh off her Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 2024 Venice Biennale.
Born in Italy in 1942 and shaped by a life lived across Venezuela, the United States, Argentina, and Brazil, Maiolino’s work reflects movement, memory, and resilience. Her practice—ranging from drawing to sculpture—often centers on the human hand and the quiet power of repetition.
At MAAT, the exhibition unfolds as a journey through the museum’s sweeping Oval Gallery. Along its curved ramp, visitors encounter an intimate series of drawings, photographs, and more than 100 works on paper—sketches, notes, and visual thoughts that feel almost like stepping into the artist’s mind.
Below, the space opens dramatically into a landscape of sculpture. Massive installations made from raw clay—some shaped on-site using tons of material—invite closer inspection. The pieces evolve as they dry, shifting in color and texture, capturing time in motion. Some forms resemble coiled pasta or gently folded earth, echoing gestures of everyday life while hinting at something more elemental and universal.
There’s a tactile beauty to Poetic Earth—grounded, sensory, and quietly mesmerizing. It’s the kind of exhibition that lingers, drawing you in not with spectacle, but with the simple, profound act of making.
For more information, visit the MAAT website.
MAAT
Avenida Brasília
Belém
Lisbon
Phone: +351 210 028 130
Hours: Wednesday to Monday – 10:00 to 19:00
Closed: Tuesdays and 1 Jan, 1 May, 25 Dec, 24 and 31 Dec (from 15.00)