The documentary ¿De qué casa eres?, directed by Ana Pérez-Quiroga, a researcher at CHAIA – the Centre for Art History and Artistic Research at the University of Évora, forms the basis of one of the main exhibitions at the 24th Cerveira International Art Biennial, which will run from 18 July to 30 December 2026.
The group exhibition ¿De qué casa eres? draws on the conceptual framework developed by Ana Pérez-Quiroga to reflect on identity, belonging, displacement, exile and memory, bringing together 46 invited artists from 16 countries and seven previously unseen works produced specifically for the Biennial.
Inspired by the documentary of the same name and the artistic journey the artist has been developing around the story of her mother, Angelita Pérez — one of around three thousand Spanish Republican children evacuated to the Soviet Union during the Spanish Civil War —, the exhibition transforms the question “¿ De qué casa eres?” into an open reflection on the contemporary meaning of ‘home’ as a physical, emotional, cultural and political territory.
According to Mafalda Santos, the Biennial’s artistic director, the question that gives the exhibition its title “does not seek a definitive answer or a fixed place on the map”. On the contrary, it constitutes “an intimate, political and sensitive inquiry” that addresses themes such as identity, belonging, memory and displacement. In an era marked by mobility and the fluidity of borders, home is no longer understood merely as an architectural space, but asserts itself as “a sentimental geography, a language in one’s luggage or an archive that we carry with us over time”.
In line with the Biennial’s overarching theme, “Territories without Borders”, the exhibition brings together Portuguese artists based abroad, creators with dual nationality and international artists living and working in Portugal, establishing a dialogue centred on experiences of migration, multiculturalism and belonging. Ana Pérez-Quiroga herself is also taking part in the Biennial with works featured in this project, including ¿De qué casa eres?, the installation Peixinhos – tu inventaste! (2023) and the mural interventions Mamã and Expedición a la URSS, in a presentation that extends the themes explored in the documentary into the exhibition space.
The inclusion of Ana Pérez-Quiroga’s creative universe in one of the main exhibitions at the Cerveira International Art Biennial represents a significant recognition of the artistic and conceptual significance of the project ¿De qué casa eres?, whose transdisciplinary approach combines documentary film, installation, performance and artistic research.