Her family was deeply connected to the intellectual and artistic circles of the time, with her parents being prominent figures in Portuguese society.

After experimenting with small creations at home, she received encouragement from her father, who provided clay sourced from the Sacavém ceramics factory.

Despite societal expectations that sculpture was an unsuitable pursuit for women and rarely led to financial independence, Colaço's parents supported her artistic ambitions.

She cut her hair short, dressed in men’s suits and ties, and wrote poems and essays addressing the condition of women in Portugal.

Colaço’s identity as a lesbian was known to her family, who sought to shield her from public scrutiny in the deeply conservative society of early 20th-century Portugal.

Despite these challenges, she became an active member of the feminist Conselho Nacional das Mulheres Portuguesas (National Council of Portuguese Women), joining alongside her mother, Branca de Gonta Colaço.

Notable attendees included the painters Eduarda Lapa and Mily Possoz, and the sculptor António Teixeira Lopes.

[1][2] After her mother's death in 1945, Colaço began to show signs of poor health and chose to settle in the family home, where she continued to produce works of art and write texts on the condition of women in Portuguese society.

Her last work, a monumental sculpture of the Assumption of Mary, was commissioned by the parish of Aguiar da Beira in northern Portugal.