Threads of a Practice

What if we leveraged ancestral knowledge from diaspora women and guided them to become the authors of their own stories in thread?

Two years ago, Homelore began as a question whispered within these very walls. What if we leveraged ancestral knowledge from diaspora women and guided them to become the authors of their own stories in thread? What if the needle could become a tool for claiming space, for stitching presence into places designed to render certain lives invisible?

This exhibition traces the growth of an idea into an organisation. What started as a small incubator project has blossomed into a platform where artisans in Lisbon gather, create, and redefine what it means to carry tradition forward.

Here, you will witness the process—the sketches, the experiments, the conversations held in thread. You will see technique evolve as stitches from Punjab meet those from Bangladesh, as Sindhi patterns converse with Portuguese influences. You will encounter the archives of our neighbourhood maps, and glimpse the new directions our hands are reaching toward.

Homelore at two years remains rooted in its origin of this university, and this city, but its branches extend outward. The work continues. The stitches multiply. The question that started it all now echoes beyond these walls, carried by the women who stitch their answers into being.

A project led by Riddhi Varma, a graduate in Masters' in Management and DESIS Lab Fellow, Homelore is a women-led collective exploring evolving neocultures shaped by diasporic experiences through traditional craft techniques.

Their practice centers on collaboration, bringing together female artisans from diverse diasporic backgrounds, creating works that weave together personal narratives, shared histories, and the vibrant textures of life in a globalized world.

Agenda:

• Exhibition: “ Threads of a Practice'.”
• Opening: March 11 at 12:30 PM
• Guided tour of the exhibition led by Ridhi and an artisan
• A toast to mark the moment

Date & Time: March 11, 2026 - 11 April
Location: NOVA SBE Carcavelos - K.onnect Zone