Emptiness occupies a vast space

19 Sep – 07 Nov 2026

Emptiness occupies a vast space is an exhibition curated by 10th grade students from António Inácio da Cruz High School, in Grândola. It is the outcome of a project developed in partnership with the Plano Nacional das Artes (PNA), as part of the celebrations marking the 70th anniversary of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. The exhibition can be visited at the Grândola Municipal Library.

The 10th grade students share their experience of curating and conceiving this exhibition, revealing the creative process, the challenges they encountered, and the themes chosen.

‘When the project was first presented to us, doubts and uncertainties quickly emerged. Would we be up to the challenge? What would it really mean to take on the curatorship of an exhibition? But these concerns soon gave way to mutual support, transforming our classroom into a laboratory of ideas.

We knew that bringing different ideas and perspectives together in a single exhibition would be a challenge, so we joined forces to ensure that each of us could maintain our own identity and creative freedom throughout the process.

In the end, the experience exceeded our expectations: more than studying and observing works of art, we were able to interpret them, reflect on their messages, and assign new meanings to them from our own point of view.

The result is the exhibition Emptiness occupies a vast space, which celebrates the individuality of each contribution as well as our collective participation.

The works and themes were carefully selected to create connections between them and convey different emotions, stories and reflections.

We wanted to go beyond what is simply ‘beautiful’ and use art to explore real issues that affect us, such as mental health, identity and the body.

We address current and deeply human questions, choosing the themes ‘Emotional Emptiness’, ‘Dying to Be Reborn’, ‘Anxiety About the Future’ and ‘Violence Against the Female Body’ because they invite reflection, are present in people’s lives in different ways and, fortunately, are gaining increasing visibility.

Our biggest challenge was bringing together all the works, ideas and different styles into a single exhibition and managing the (limited) time we had. We tried to create a coherent plan in which each work could converse with the others, guiding visitors along a path of reflection and discovery.

To help orient visitors, we offer different ‘menus’: ‘Death / Rebirth’, ‘The Gaze’, ‘Solitude’ and ‘Life’. Each one brings together a group of works linked by a common theme and acts as a guide throughout the visit, helping visitors understand our intention by creating a bridge between the artworks and the reality each one represents for us.’