Luísa Mota is interested in archetype as a component of the collective unconscious. She explores, therefore, the symbolic system that defines common behaviour patterns. As such, the representation of the phenomena that articulates the individual and society constitutes the subject matter of her practice. With this in mind she develops a series of works and characters that inhabit her performances and that are in-current to the socio-cultural needs of the places where she exhibits/produces her work. The characters tend to develop a behaviour and appearance of their own that have been shaped by their “imaginative” history and that fit the larger narrative of her work. The Invisible Men for example, are completely covered from head to toe in a silvery suit, and often appear in the urban city in parades and processions. These characters tend to represent the proletariat and a reference to social invisibility and protest.

Luísa Mota was born in Porto, where she currently lives and works. She has a degree in Fine Arts from Goldsmiths College and an MA in Sculpture from the Royal College of Art, both in London. Her work spans performance, photography, sculpture, and video. She addresses themes related to belief systems, religious and cultural stigmas, in an analysis of human conditioning. Her exhibitions include the performance Gênesis e Gênis, III Bienal da Bahia, 2014; Perception is Wild, Paço das Artes, São Paulo, 2014; the solo exhibitions Os Outros Homens, Delicate Nature and Fractal, all at Nuno Centeno, 2020, 2021 and 2023, respectively; and the performance I believe in good things coming, at CIAJG, Guimarães, curated by Marta Mestre, 2022. She is represented by Galeria Nuno Centeno.