Last week, the MiratecArts program “From the Azores to the World” took the jewelry and sculpture work of Catarina Alves, from São Miguel, “Pedras de Lava,” on a promotional tour to Canada.

Appearances on several Portuguese community television programs, meetings with specialty boutiques, and a presentation at Canada’s largest event in the sector, “One of a Kind,” have made Canadians and people of Portuguese descent begin to covet the works produced in the Azores.

Since 1975, “One Of A Kind” has been based on the fundamental belief that art and craftsmanship enrich our lives with diverse contexts and perspectives. As such, the event is not only seen as a market for products, but also as a public square, a meeting place, where people gather to give craftsmanship the attention it deserves. Here, various entities and artisans got to know “Pedras de Lava,” but it was at “Saudade Toronto,” a boutique specializing in the best that is produced in Portugal, that the first pieces were able to be displayed in the city of Toronto.

“This experience shook up my life,” admits Catarina Alves. “I had the opportunity to see a lot, a lot of creativity, but I didn’t find anything like my work. Wherever I went, I felt that they valued my work, which made me believe even more that my brand has room to grow beyond borders.”

Catarina Alves began to explore handmade jewelry, seeking to develop her own design in the creation of her pieces, inspired by nature and the craftsmanship of the Azores, combining sculpture with jewelry, using local materials in a sustainable way, adding value and intention to each piece created, with a sense of ethics, respect, authenticity, and innovation, aiming to spread a piece of Azorean nature around the world. She will soon return to Canada with the “Portas da Cidade” project for Brampton, and continues to create unique collections with the aim of presenting them in other markets. “I don’t know what’s to come, but I accept it with courage and a desire to proudly take a piece of the Azores around the world,” says the artist from Candelária.

From MiratecArts Press Release