A LIVING ARCHIVE OF HOPE AND TRANSFORMATION OF WOMEN BEYOND DIAGNOSISAn annual charitable portrait project dedicated to women living with or beyond breast cancer.
Created by Mara D’Eleán in collaboration with Sandrina Francisco, Rising Roses brings together portraiture, personal testimony and collective encounter to create visibility, preserve individual stories and expand breast cancer awareness.
Rising Roses
BEYOND THE DIAGNOSISBreast cancer can transform the body, but it can also affect identity, self-perception and the way a woman recognises herself.
Hair, skin, scars and other physical changes may alter more than appearance. They can affect the intimate relationship between body, femininity and personal identity.
Rising Roses was created in response to these experiences.
Through photography, beauty, styling and personal testimony, the project creates a space where each participant can be seen beyond the medical narrative — in her individuality, complexity and presence.
This is not about asking women to perform strength or conceal what they have lived through. It is about creating images that honour the whole person behind the diagnosis.
When Art Empowers Transformation
THE PROJECTRising Roses is an annual not-for-profit initiative combining an editorial portrait experience with breast cancer awareness and collective testimony.
Once a year, women who are living with or beyond breast cancer are invited to apply through an open call.
Each selected participant is welcomed into a carefully developed creative process. The artistic direction is shaped around the visual identity of that year’s edition while leaving space for each woman’s personality and story to remain visible.
The resulting portraits and testimonies become part of a growing archive of women whose experiences are too often reduced to illness, survival or statistics.
Together, they form a more complex portrait of what it means to endure, change, rebuild and continue.
HOW IT UNFOLDS-
Applications open once a year for women who are currently undergoing treatment or have previously experienced breast cancer.
Each application includes space for the woman to share her story, her relationship with her image and what participating in Rising Roses would mean to her.
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Before the portrait is created, we listen.
Each participant’s experience, personality and relationship with her body inform the way she is welcomed and photographed.
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Every woman takes part in a fully produced editorial portrait experience, supported by a multidisciplinary team of photographers, stylists, makeup artists, hairstylists and production professionals.
The intention is not to disguise the experience of illness. It is to create an image in which the participant can encounter herself with presence, dignity and creative possibility.
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Participants are invited to share their stories in their own words.
These testimonies give context to the portraits and create space for experiences that are often difficult to communicate or insufficiently represented.
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The process culminates in a private annual gathering at the Mara D’Eleán studio in Lisbon.
During this event, the participants see their portraits for the first time and come together for an evening of image, conversation, invited speakers and collective reflection.
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The portraits and testimonies continue beyond the private experience through digital publication, exhibitions, awareness initiatives and selected public presentations.
Each edition contributes to a living archive intended to preserve individual stories and broaden public understanding of breast cancer’s impact on body, identity and everyday life.
THE RISING ROSES EDITORIALS
Each edition of Rising Roses gives rise to a photographic editorial shaped around its own distinct visual language.
More than a gallery of portraits, these editorials bring together the images and stories of the women who have participated in the project, preserving their individuality beyond the diagnosis.
Explore each edition and discover the women, testimonies and creative teams who brought it to life.
THE WOMEN. THE STORIES.
Every portrait begins with a life that cannot be summarised by a diagnosis.
The Rising Roses archive brings together the individual portraits and testimonies of the women who have participated in each edition.
Their experiences are different. Some are in treatment. Others are rebuilding life afterwards. Some speak about fear, loss or changes to the body. Others speak about relationships, work, motherhood, identity and the decisions that illness brought into sharper focus.
What connects them is not a single story of courage.
It is the decision to be seen in their full humanity.
A collective work.
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Although each portrait carries Mara D’Eleán’s artistic direction & Sandrina Francisco’s Production; Rising Roses is made possible through collective contribution.
Every edition brings together professionals, brands, health specialists, speakers, supporters and volunteers who contribute their time, knowledge, products, services or resources.
This shared effort allows the project to create a carefully supported experience for every participant and extend its message beyond the studio.
Rising Roses is not only a series of portraits. It is a network of people choosing to place creativity, care and visibility in service of a shared cause.
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Art Direction, Concept & Photography: Mara D’Eleán
Co-Producer & Head Stylist Fashion Studio Lab / Sandrina Francisco
Styling and Production Assistance:Mirvana Andreis
Makeup: Patricia Ribeiro
Hair: Alexandre Carrilho& Salão do Bairro
Assistants: Alana and Camila; Koni, Peter, and Stephan; Flávia Tampeli; Maria Estevens; Vanessa Bacelar; Paulo Pereira; Válter Freitas
Video: José Silveira & António Barbot
To celebrate World Breast Cancer Day, we hold a private event at our studio every year, where participants can view their images for the first time. We welcome speakers from the fields of integrative health, personal development, and image, as well as other surprises that raise awareness about the issue and help them navigate this experience with greater ease.
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D. Bacalhau and Rota 94 Restaurants;
Madeira Pastry;
Clarins, L’Oréal, Nyce; Kiko; Douglas;
Raquel Jegundo (Chinese medicine); Célia Caiado; Laura de Paris & Mariza Seita Micropigmentation; Leo Cris & Great Lengths; Dr. Ivandro’s book “Mudamos pelo que fazemos” (“We Change Through What We Do”);
Dama de Copas;
Halonature Clinic; Mar Relvas; Cata Vassalo; Secretos del Agua; Nutriama; El Corte Inglés; Portuguese League Against Cancer; Asseco PST.Guest Speakers: José Pereira Neves; Helena Pimenta; Dr. Ivandro; Sandrina Francisco; Maria Inês Sobral; Joana de Alma Roque;Susana Cristina Rodrigues; Christelle Rodrigues; Rosário (Nutriama)
Partners And Supporters
Rising Roses grows through the generosity of organisations, brands and individuals who believe in the value of visibility, awareness and dignified representation.
Support may take the form of:
— Creative and production services;
— Beauty, fashion and wellbeing contributions;
— Participant gifts and experiences;
— Financial or material support;
— Exhibition and communication opportunities;
— Health education and specialist knowledge;
— Venues, logistics and public visibility.
All partnerships are considered carefully to ensure alignment with the purpose, values and needs of the project.
NEXT EDITION
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NEXT EDITION ✳︎
We are inviting women living with or beyond breast cancer to take part in the next edition of Rising Roses.
Selected participants will be welcomed into an editorial portrait experience bringing together photography, beauty, styling and personal testimony.
If you would like to share your story and become part of this growing visual archive, we invite you to apply.