Vanessa Barragão

Vanessa Alexandra Neto Barragão

Textile Artist & designer

14 May 1992

Education

Fashion design degree  |  2010 – 2013  |  Faculdade de Arquitectura – ULISBOA

Master in Fashion and textile design  |  2013 – 2016  |  Faculdade de Arquitectura – ULISBOA

Career

Textile designer director – Fábrica artesanal Tapetes Beiriz  |  2016 – present

Textile artist & owner – Studio Vanessa Barragão  |  2014 – present

Exhibitions & events

Altered Realties with Fantastic Actions, Galeria Casa Cuadrada | 2020 | Miami – USA

Art Miami | 2020 | Miami – USA

Art Wynwood | 2020 | Miami – USA

Art New York | 2019 | New York City – USA

22 anos de Design – MUDE |  2014  | Lisbon – PT

Demo’14 |  2014  | Lisbon – PT

Fashion Five |  2014  | FIL, Lisbon – PT

Monocle Market |  2016  | London – UK

Sitara |  2017  | St Andrews – UK

Milan design week |  2017  |  Milan – IT

Threads + Colour 2 |  2017  | Sidney – AU

Daily Day |  2017  | Porto – PT

Habitat Valencia |  2018  | Valencia – ES

Interieur Kortrijk |  2018  | Kortrijk – BE

Porto design biennal |  2018  | Porto – PT

Domotex  |  2019  | Hannover – DE

The textile industry is one of the most polluting in the world. In almost everything process chemicals are used, especially when it comes to the fiber’s treatment and dyeing. All the machinery used requires tons of energy while producing a lot of waste and disposable trash. It is extremely harmful for our world and it affects all of its different natural environments, particularly the ocean which absorbs 90% of the atmosphere pollution, warming up itself to the point that so many species get threatened, being the corals, who sustain so many other creatures, one of the most endangered ones.

Vanessa believes in an upcycling effort towards the right way to try to fight against this kind of negative mindset described above. All the materials used come from the deadstock of several local factories which is first cleaned and then selected to recycle and reuse in her projects. Her production is completely artisanal and handmade by using ancestral techniques, like latch hook, felt, knitting, macrame and crochet, to create her artworks.