AMANDE HAEGHEN AT LISBON BY DESIGN
“These colours, these movements, these reflections [of Lisbon] are found naturally in my relationship with the material”
Inspired by the natural world, ceramicist Amande Haeghen creates lighting, furniture, and sculptures that have a raw beauty, as if forged by the rising tide or the wind. Crafted from stoneware, porcelain and glass by Amande’s own hand in her Lisbon studio, the pieces possess inviting textures and, in understated, organic forms, both the power and tranquillity of nature. This year’s Lisbon by Design, running from 22 - 26 May, is an opportunity to experience her work firsthand in a city that is a constant source of inspiration for her.
Born and raised in Paris, Amande Haeghen opened her first studio in the French capital in 2018, before a life-changing holiday at Costa da Caparica inspired her move to Lisbon. “I decided to come in November 2020; Covid had passed through there. I was on the beach in Caparica, and my daughters were playing in swimsuits on the beach at sunset. It was nice and warm, all the people we met were adorable, there was this farniente mood even in November, this sweetness of life in the streets. I said ‘Let’s go’; that same evening, I inquired about the steps to settle here,” Amande explains. In 2021, she opened her Lisbon studio.
Haeghen’s Lisbon studio doubles as an artists’ collective, where knowledge, skills, and friendships are shared. Named House of Haeg, it is dedicated to a range of mediums including glass, clay, and photography and acts not only as a place of creation but of knowledge sharing with the wider community through exhibitions, talks, and performances. It offers workshops, including those on ceramics led by Joana Garcia e Costa, and those on photography led by Barbara Portalier. House of Haeg is also currently hosting an artist-in-residence who “works with the land,” as Amande explains. “Discussions and sharing between artists are very nourishing. The idea is to maintain within this place a creative exchange between artists but also people from the neighbourhood,” she continues.
Creative exchange is a familiar way of life for Amande Haeghen, who grew up in an artistic home. “My mother played an essential role in my awakening to art. She painted most of her time and the house was her studio. Over a period of time she made a large number of collages and I think that it was this period in particular which determined my desire to make sculpture and assemble. I admired her ability to draw with the stroke of a pencil or brush. I also think that this admiration made me turn to a medium other than painting,” says Amande.
Both Lisbon’s creative culture and its blend of urbanity and nature make it a perfect home for Amande, and the city is a constant source of inspiration for her. “[In Lisbon you are] able to reconnect with nature and all the diversity of Portugal in a few moments in a unique place,” she says. “These colours, these movements, these reflections are found naturally in my relationship with the material [I create with]. Freezing these moments where a wave recedes, the flamboyant colours of a sky… unconsciously, these images have been invited into the rooms for 3 years.”
Working with high temperature clay, as porcelain and stoneware, combined with glass, Amande enjoys exploration and the element of surprise in the creative process: “Each piece is different and requires specific thought in its construction. It’s this incessant questioning of the process that excites me. And, of course, the fact that we always integrate an element of experimentation into the work of our pieces means that there are many surprises, which makes our days unique,” she says.
At this year’s Lisbon by Design, Amande Haeghen will showcase this experimental side of her work: “I will display, on one side, a set of pieces like an organic family which adorn the wall made of sandstone and molten glass and, on the other, a large ceramic painting in 6 parts. Always around this idea of assembly and accumulation where earth and glass meet in crystallisation,” she explains.
The domestic setting of Palacete Gomes Freire, the 19th century mansion in which the intimate, curated design event Lisbon by Design is housed, is a perfect backdrop for the humanistic qualities of Amande Haeghen’s work. The annual design event, now in its fourth year, brings together some of the best contemporary design crafted in Portugal, sensitively presented over 10 exhibition rooms. De La Espada proudly sponsors the event, as part of our ongoing mission to support Portuguese creativity. Visit to see Amande Haeghen’s work as well as the work of other emerging and established creators, operating in mediums including ceramics, textiles, timber, and more.
Lisbon by Design
22 - 26 May 2024
Palacete Gomes Freire
R. Gomes Freire 98
1150-179 Lisboa
Learn more about Amande Haeghen
Learn more about Lisbon by Design
