Migrant living archive: Practice to improve cultural integration in participatory art and design projects

Abstract

The paper focuses on the creative process and its image, namely of immigrant citizens and descendants, in the context of community-based art and design projects. This dynamic archive, including pho­ tography and video, is part of an ongoing practice involving newly arrived and second-generation immigrants to Lisbon (Portugal) and Cedar Rapids (US). Based on the participant’s cultural heritage, the following prac­ tice aims to enhance the creative process as a vehicle for dialogue, build artistic objects, and develop social and cultural sustainability. The research mainly explores the methodology and methods of co-creative work developed with the participants, particularly on the expanded notion of archive and heterotopia. This approach is a way to interact with the citizens in question and give visibility to their different cultures, specifically through a living archive. In this context, these aspects are used as tools to promote a reflection about the cul­tural and social impact of immigrants and descendants and their interrelation with the new places.