Education & Research
Art & Design

Under the Skin
2025
Weaving


Under the Skin transforms discarded women’s tights into a spatial, woven sculpture. Once a material worn close to the body, it becomes a carrier of hidden stories in which identity and femininity are made visible.

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Zahlensalat
2023–24 · Spatial Intervention
Lärchenplatz Campus, Magglingen

Zahlensalat is a spatial intervention developed in collaboration with the HGK and inspired by the project for the further development of SFISM Magglingen.


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Eletronic Chair
2023
Upycling Project


An old steel chair was reinterpreted using woven electrical cables, creating a link between craft-based learning and contemporary design.

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MiraVouga
2021
Spatial Intervention
with António Mesquita, Jérôme Philipp, and Sofie Arvidsson
Land Art Festival, Sever do Vouga

MiraVouga is a spatial intervention that opens a dialogue between analog and digital perception. Using augmented reality, a personal image is created in which reality and virtuality merge.


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Social Metamorphosis
2012
Sculpture
Porto

Social Metamorphosis addresses the act of breaking out of social cocoons. The work describes a transformation from the real to the unreal—a process in which the self is released from predefined roles.

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Natacha Pinheiro
EN | DE
studio.natachapinheiro@gmail.com InstagramNatacha Pinheiro is a Portuguese interdisciplinary artist working at the intersection of textile, architecture, and education. Trained in textile design and architecture, her practice explores how material, structure, and craft shape the spaces we design and inhabit.
After several years working in architectural practice in Basel, her interest in hands-on and experimental processes led her to the field of Textiles and Technical Design (TTG). She is currently completing a Master’s degree in Didactics of Textiles and Technical Design at the University of Teacher Education Bern (PH Bern). Through internships at PH Bern, PH Schwyz, ETH Zurich, and Archijeunes, she has developed strong didactic and research-based skills in architectural and design education.
Based in Basel, she teaches Textiles and Technical Design and Visual Arts at lower secondary level, creating open and experimental learning environments that foster curiosity, creativity, and self-confidence.




Educationsince 2023
2018
2017
2012
Master’s student in Didactics TTG-D, PH Bern
Master’s degree in Architecture, Faculty of Architecture Porto  (FAUP)
Exchange semester, Accademia di Architettura di Mendrisio
Diploma in Textile Arts, Arts High School, EASR, Porto



Professional Experience2025-2026
2025
since 2024

2023-2024
2023
2022-2024
2021-2022
2018-2021
2017-2018
2017
2016
Internship, ETH Zurich, seminar week Public Drawing, Vallée de Joux
Internship, Archijeunes
Teacher of Textiles and Technical Design & Visual Arts, Lower Secondary Level (Sek I), Basel-Stadt
Research Assistant, Commoning ländliche Baukultur
Internship, PH Bern, Seminar TTG 1
Architect, Beer Merz Architects, Basel
Architect, Atelier Ba.le, Basel
Architect, Rahbaran Hürzeler Architects, Basel
City Guide, Porto
Internship, Beer Merz Architects, Basel
Internship, Charles Pictet Architecte, Geneva



Membership OASR
Portuguese Architects Association
since 2022



Research ProjectsTeam-Teaching im Textiles und Technisches Gestalten Perspektiven aus der Praxis. Fallstudie an der Sekundarschule Vogesen, Basel Stadt.
Project Lead: Natacha Pinheiro & Claire Février (PH Bern)
Project Duration: February 2024 until January 2026

Commoning ländliche Baukultur – Die Baukulturexpert:innen von morgen

Project Lea: Lea Weniger &  Prof. Dr. Gila Kolb (PHSZ),
Project Duration: June 2022 until May 2024



Awards



1. Prize – Miravouga
Competition for an installation at the Land Art Festival, Sever do Vouga, 2021

1. Prize – There Is Something Gold in Existing
Competition for an installation at the Faculty of Architecture, Porto, 2018

1. Prize – The Road Less Travelled
Competition for an installation at the Faculty of Architecture, Porto, 2017
  


PublicationsWeniger, Lea; Pinheiro, Natacha & Kolb, Gila (2024). Mit Schüler*innen Baukultur erforschen: Visionen für Lebensräume von morgen. Art Education Research, 14 (27).

Pinheiro, Natacha (2018). Entrelaçar/Cestaria Portuguesa: intersecções entre artesanato e arquitectura. Porto: Faculdade de Arquitectura da Universidade do Porto.





Schoe - Like You
2025
Joining, Construction, and Design
Textiles und Technisches Gestalten, Zyklus 3

Students designed and constructed a wearable shoe based on their own ideas and material experiments. From joining techniques to final presentation, the focus was on individual design and personal expression.


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Passive Smartphone Speaker

2025
Technisches Gestalten, Zyklus 3

The project explored how smartphone sound can be amplified without electronics. Through acoustic experiments, model making, and precise planning, students developed functional speakers with individual design solutions.


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Christmas Gift Wrapping Paper
2025
Pattern Design with Stamp Printing
Bildnerisches Gestalten, Zyklus 3

Using stamp printing, students designed their own gift wrapping paper. Through developing a motif, experimenting with patterns, and printing on recycled paper, the project connected design, craft, and sustainability.


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Re-stitched – Old Cards, New Memories
2025
Embroidery
Textiles Gestalten, Zyklus 3

Old postcards were further developed and reinterpreted through embroidery. Using thread, color, and texture, students created personal visual narratives that bridge memory and the present.


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Gymnasium Neufeld – Rethought
2025
Workshop with Archijeunes
Kantonale Fachkonferenzen Bildnerisches Gestalten Sek II, Gymnasium Neufeld (Bern)

In a workshop for upper secondary school teachers from the Canton of Bern at Gymnasium Neufeld, the idea set “Rethinking School” was presented. Using analog collage techniques, participants developed alternative visions for the schoolyard and engaged with co-creation, architectural culture education, and the active role of schools as designed and designable living spaces.


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Identity in TTG
2025
Seminar Fachentwicklung
PH Bern

Design-based teaching project in the field of Textiles and Technical Design (TTG) that explores how identity formation can be encouraged and made visible through open-ended tasks, personal objects, and material-based making.

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Giorgia O’Keeffe with Gouache
2025
Color Theory
Bildnerisches Gestalten, Zyklus 3

Students analyzed the color palette of Georgia O’Keeffe and further developed their own works using gouache paints. Between color study and personal interpretation, harmonious and expressive visual continuations emerged.


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Op Art Cube World
2025
Parallel Perspective (Isometry)
Bildnerisches Gestalten, Zyklus 3

The focus of this project in Visual Arts was the exploration of spatial representation, color, and optical illusion.


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Architecture or Waste?2025
Photographic Staging & Digital Image Editing
Bildnerisches Gestalten, Zyklus 3

In this project, students transformed discarded objects into architecturally evocative spaces using photography and digital image editing. Light, perspective, and atmosphere played a central role.


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Popcorn Still Life

2025
Pencil Drawing
Bildnerisches Gestalten, Zyklus 3

Using a single piece of popcorn as a subject, students explored light, shadow, and texture. Through careful observation and the use of various shading techniques, three-dimensional pencil drawings were created.


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My Utensil – Naturally Designed
2025
Bundle Dyeing & Sewing
Textiles Gestalten, Zyklus 3

A self-dyed cotton fabric formed the basis for a personal utensil. From plant-based dyeing to precise craftsmanship, the project combined sustainable material choices with hands-on making.


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Mirror, Mirror… Who Are You?
2025
Punch Needle
Textiles Gestalten, Zyklus 3

Starting from a mood board, students developed their own mirror using the punch needle technique. The focus was on material experimentation, textures, and independent planning.Planung.


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Own Crochet Project2024
Crochet
Textiles Gestalten, Zyklus 3

Based on their own project idea, students developed an individual crochet object. The design process included planning, color selection, and hands-on realization following instructions.


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Sac Collé
2023
Internship at PH Bern
Seminar TTG 1

Development of a design-based assignment during an internship at PH Bern (Seminar TTG 1), supporting students in the idea-generation process and the design of individual bags through the use of collage.


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The Hidden Colors of the Bauhaus2023
Seminar Design Theorie
HKB

An exploration of weaving at the Bauhaus as a central medium of color theory, with a focus on the work of Bauhaus women weavers and their experimental approach to color, material, and perception.


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Vienna Cane
A Biographical Perspective
2023
Seminar Material Culture
PH Bern

This project examines a piece of Vienna cane from the PH Bern collection as an object with its own biography. Through its journey across cultural, historical, and educational contexts, the work reveals how the meaning, function, and knowledge embedded in an everyday object change over time.


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Interweave
2018
Master’s Thesis FAUP

Interweave is an investigation of Portuguese weaving techniques that connects craft and architecture. Using locally sourced bamboo, a lightweight, textile structure emerges, demonstrating how traditional knowledge can be translated into a contemporary and sustainable practice.


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Drawing as a Foundation2012-2018

Drawings produced during the Master’s studies in Architecture Porto, Portugal.

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