Hand in Hand

Elizabeth Xi Bauer presents Hand in Hand, an exhibition of new work by Lidia Lisbôa and Thiago Barbalho. Bringing together two practices grounded in handmade processes, this exhibition establishes a dialogue centred on material engagement and sustained making. Rather than treating the handmade as a stylistic category, Hand in Hand approaches it as a working method shaped by repetition and close attention, one that quietly reconsiders established values through the transformative work of the hands. 

Set against a broader context of increasing automation and digital saturation, the exhibition foregrounds artisanal techniques as considered and relevant forms of production. Slowness is presented not as nostalgia, but as a deliberate mode of creation, one that privileges continuity and depth of artistic inquiry. The title Hand in Hand reflects both the material focus of the works on view and the collaborative relationship between the two artists. The exchange between Barbalho and Lisbôa first took shape when Barbalho recognised shared affinities across working techniques, artistic concerns, and personal trajectories shaped by experiences of migration and the constraints of the class system, where access to creativity is often unevenly distributed.