Event History
The Buinho Residency program is for creatives and researchers from various backgrounds. Buinho creative hub opened in Alentejo (Southern region of Portugal) with the support of a curatorial team with over ten years of experience in the organization support of other residency programs in Portugal. Buinho has been successfully growing the number of applications since 2016 making it a sought-after artistic residency program. Today Buinho is a European reference for being among the only artistic residencies based on a Fablab that enhances creative experimentation. We began with one house which accommodated two residents and the fablab, but the residency has grown to three houses, shared and individual studios, the digital fabrication workshop, and exhibition spaces. And finally, together with the local municipality, we now also offer access to a metalworking workshop dedicated to sculpture and plastic recycling. We have received visual artists, performance artists, photographers, curators, writers, sculptors, designers, media artists, which confirms the eclectic nature of our program.
What Makes this event different?
This artist residency program offers a distinctive working experience in Southern Portugal, situated in the historic town of Messejana. The town's charm lies in its contrasts, from past aristocratic houses and hidden patios to rural dwellings and baroque white churches, surrounded by the vast plains and ancient cork trees characterizing the Alentejo region. Messejana, known as the sunniest part of Europe with over 3000 hours of sunshine annually, maintains a robust local identity rich in traditions, folklore, and festivities, with a population of 800. Renowned for its gastronomy, the town is conveniently located just 1 and 1/2 hours from Lisbon and other major cities in Portugal. Buinho stands as one of Portugal's pioneer rural FabLabs, offering artists a platform for limitless experimentation. Distinguished as one of the few FabLabs in Europe with a residency program designed for artists and designers, Buinho facilitates engagement with technologies such as 3D Printing, Lasercut, CNC, and more, often serving as artists' first exposure to these tools. The Buinho Education program, overseen by Buinho and oriented towards social design projects, allows resident artists to actively engage with the local community. Primarily focused on activities involving local children and young people, Buinho Education also contributes to the enhancement of activities, equipment, and space renovations for various local institutions and informal groups in Messejana. A recent addition includes an educational makerspace in Messejana, providing free activities for families and children. Moreover, in collaboration with the local municipality, a new workshop has been introduced to address plastic recycling. Four Precious Plastic Machines are available for residents to utilize in experimental art projects, learning, and community engagement. To learn more about Precious Plastic, visit their website at https://preciousplastic.com/.
Copyright Policy
The artist maintains copyright ownership of the works unless commonly agreed otherwise.
Image Usage Rights
Images will be used for promotion in social networks and Buinho website, but only with the permission and consent of the artist.
Call for Artists from Different Backgrounds
Addressed to: Artists, designers, makers, photographers, writers, and researchers, of all ages and nationalities.
Disciplines: Visual arts, Sculpture, Photography, Writing, Design, New Media, Curatorial, Performance, Research
This interdisciplinary artist residency program welcomes creators across a spectrum of disciplines, including Painting, Drawing, Sculpture, New Media, Video, Sound, Performance, Design, Writing, Curatorial, and more. Located in the picturesque town of Messejana, the program offers durations ranging from two weeks to three months.
Ensuring a high level of quality and support, our artist residency provides a maximum of six individual rooms for accommodation and private studios. Participants enjoy access to shared and private studio spaces, as well as a fully equipped FabLab, jewelry workshop, educational maker space, and a Precious Plastic facility, among other collaborative workspaces and projects.
Designed to offer creative individuals the essential elements of time, space, and resources, the program encourages experimentation with diverse project solutions and approaches. Immerse yourself in the distinctive ambiance of Messejana to uncover fresh insights that enhance your artistic practice. Open studios showcase works in progress, a collaborative effort promoted by residents with the support of Buinho. Additionally, Buinho facilitates opportunities for artists to exhibit their creations in various exhibition spaces through our network of local partners.
Our Spaces
The Buinho Artist in Residency program offers a range of accommodation options and shared workspaces across five distinct houses:
- Casa da Avo is located at the heart of Messejana, offering two spacious studios that overlook the main town square, along with two private bedrooms discreetly positioned at the rear of the house to ensure optimal privacy. In addition to its charming courtyard and terrace, the standout feature of this house is its compact yet well-appointed jewelry laboratory, complete with a cozy fireplace to keep you warm during the winter months.
- Sao Joao house is an XIX-century shepherd’s house, remodeled in 2019 to offer a unique charm. It is located in the street of the museum, on top of a hill, offering from its garden a unique view over Messejana. Its studios with high white walls and a quiet environment offer the perfect setting for visual artists and writers.
- Joaquina’s house was our latest achievement and finding. It is a completely rebuilt one-person apartment that offers a private studio and accommodation to a resident looking for more quietness and privacy. It is located just 300 meters from Messejana’s central square, in a very central and typical section of the historic center.
- The Buinho main working hub embraces a modern, open-space design, featuring a central studio in the main building and a workshop located in the backyard. In 2015, this entire interior space underwent a comprehensive redesign and reconstruction, marking it as the inaugural house within this project and granting it the privilege of its distinctive name. Serving as Buinho’s primary headquarters, this house is home to the Fablab and Precious Plastic facilities.
- Buinho Educativo Messejana is an extension of Buinho’s main FabLab, with a specific focus on our educational initiatives. Within its confines, you’ll find two spacious rooms, both equipped with a comprehensive array of digital fabrication tools, including laser cutters, 3D printers, and vinyl cutters. Additionally, it boasts an extensive collection of electronic components, robotics resources, VR headsets, and various other devices. Its distinctive capabilities make it accessible to both residents and educators, positioning it as the central hub for our workshops and training programs.
Free Wi-Fi access is available in all interior and exterior spaces of the houses.
All houses are equipped with fully furnished kitchens, linens, and towels for the comfort of their residents. Moreover, residents have individual storage space and a fridge to prepare and keep their food.
The cleaning service comes once a week to each house, but residents are responsible for their laundry and the organization of common spaces.
Support
We extend comprehensive support to each artist, encompassing both curatorial guidance and production assistance, along with a diverse array of residency events. These events encompass artist presentations and talks, guided tours to other neighboring towns, interactions with the local community, the development of workshops and tutorials across various disciplines, and various other initiatives.
Our residency program provides essential production support and unfettered access to state-of-the-art equipment and workspaces. Notably, we offer a unique opportunity for artists to work within a fablab, granting them access to a wide range of digital fabrication technologies.
Moreover, we offer complimentary weekly tutorials and workshops covering topics such as 3D printing, 3D modeling, laser cutting, and plastic recycling. The program also incorporates weekly engagements with the local residents of Messejana, where we delve into traditional practices such as traditional food making, or arrange visits to traditional artisan workshops.
To enhance the artistic experience, we provide access to other spaces within Messejana, suitable for installations, interventions, presentations, exhibitions, and performances.
Practice and research
The Buinho Residency offers access to both its physical and digital libraries filled with monographs, magazines, and catalogs in both Portuguese and English, ranging from the areas of Design, Contemporary Art, and Technology. With regard to the possibility of joining theory to practice, Buinho possesses rapid prototyping equipment, which is complemented by other traditional technologies.
Enjoy Portugal, enjoy Messejana
Messejana is a picturesque rural town located in the southern Alentejo region. Renowned for its traditions, it stands as one of the South Alentejo's most well-preserved communities, boasting a wealth of heritage and an inherent feeling of community. The idyllic natural landscape that envelops the town renders it an exceptional place for exploration, artistic creation, and community engagement.
Fees 2025
We do not have public or private funding for the residencies, and aside from the normal house bills and work consumables, we have a full-time person just for production support of the residencies. As such, we have to apply fees, but we do keep the fees to a minimum since we are a not-for-profit association based in a rural area.
We try to differentiate the value of the residency fees according to the characteristics of the accommodation since each house offers bedrooms and spaces with different dimensions and privacy.
Monthly fees are the following:
1. São João larger bedroom with private bathroom and shared studio – 900€;
2. São João bedroom with shared bathroom and shared studio – 800€;
3. Joaquina’s House (the whole house for just one resident) – 1000€;
4. Casa da Avó bedroom with shared bathroom and private studios – 900€
An accompanying person has a 50% discount but must share the accommodation. It is an additional measure to support couples, artists with children, or possible artistic collaborations.
The minimum duration of each residency is two weeks and the maximum is two months. Residencies should start on the 1st or 15th of each month. Please note that after the acceptance into the Creative Residency program, we will ask for an initial deposit of 50% of the total value of the stay. The rest of the value is to be paid during the first week of residency.
Fees include the private bedroom, use of all shared spaces, the studio and workshop facilities, and all of the available equipment. Buinho will issue a receipt and send a formal acceptance letter if requested.
Cancellation requests with a full reimbursement of the deposit should be made by writing within 5 months before the start of the period of stay. All other cancellations will not result in a refund. Deposits are non-refundable and residency dates are non-transferable.
Application Information
Artists interested in participating should send by email (info@buinho.pt) a short curriculum, motivation letter, and description of the project. Equally important is to mention the proposed dates for the residency (start and length).
Applications are evaluated by an advisory committee and take into consideration the following parameters:
a) artistic quality;
b) relevance of the project;
c) motivation of the candidate.
Our AIR program values multidisciplinarity, so we expect the acceptance of creatives from different backgrounds, media, and experiences. We also try to support emerging artists who seek opportunities for international visibility and curriculum. The level of scrutiny of the portfolio's quality is proportionate to the artist's experience.
About Buinho
Buinho is a non-profit cultural association. It is distinguished by being the second Fablab accredited by the MIT Network for the Alentejo region, and the only space with these characteristics in a rural area. Buinho aspires to be a space of experimentation and social transformation, contributing to the increase of the attractiveness of rural territories. Get inspired by the daily life and environment of Messejana and stimulated by the endless possibilities and different combinations that our project has to offer.
If you wish to know more about our creative residency program, please contact us by email to info@buinho.pt
Please also visit the Event Website for more information.
