ÉVORA PLAN
A CULTURAL STRATEGY FOR ÉVORA
ONE
METHODOLOGICAL
PRINCIPLE
CULTURE AS AN
ESSENTIAL FACTOR
FOR DEVELOPMENT
ONE OVERALL OBJECTIVE
The expression of a singular cultural
character which enables sustained
development to be achieved, based on
an singular identity and features and
relations with the region which the
district forms a part of, as well as
external and universalising
contributions.
2 SPECIFIC ASPECTS
the expression of the traditional
identity
the building of modernity
8 STRATEGIES FOR INTERVENTION
The study,
preservation,
increased
awareness
and
animation of
the local
heritage
Cultural
events and
promoting
the image of
the District
at the
national and
international
level
The
construction
of facilities
and the
spread of
technology
Support for
Incentives
The creation
associations and support
of new
and popular
for and the
groups of
participation promotion of
cultural
in the
local artists
consumers
cultural
and
and
experience
researchers
widening
existing
groups
Promoting
the cultural
integration
of the city,
suburbs,
parishes and
the region
The
promotion of
the city at
the national
and
international
level
THE
STUDY,
PRESERVATION,
INCREASED
AWARENESS
AND
ANIMATION OF THE LOCAL HERITAGE
Popular phenomena such as anonymous artistic creations and the range of customs,
traditions, language, beliefs, and profane and religious rituals must be brought under
the umbrella of local heritage, joining more conventional forms: monuments,
archives, collections and works by artists, poets and the wise.
While attempting to achieve some of the objectives already set out in the Évora City
Strategic Plan, the aim is to protect the intangible urban and rural heritage, encourage
local and regional departments of State agencies, the University and local authorities
to work together, and continue of the policy of regenerating the Historic City Centre.
Priority Measures

planning and setting up a museum network;

implementing projects for the creation of a Water Museum, and also an
Ethnographic Museum which it is hoped will become an Alentejo Studies Centre;

the promotion of Historic Heritage programmes, including the planning of a range
of thematic facilities and itineraries with a view to reviving the memory of the
District;

conserving and raising the profile of the Archaeological Heritage, especially
megalithic and Roman remains;

the preservation of traditional architecture in small towns and villages in rural
areas.
CULTURAL EVENTS AND PROMOTING THE IMAGE OF THE DISTRICT
AT THE NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL LEVEL
We shall support cultural events, exploiting existing sources of potential and
encouraging the development of new such sources, thus seeking to help Évora to
promote its image at the national and European level.
There will be an on-going programme of a range of different cultural events, created
in response to a variety of types of cultural consumer and demand from the tourist
sector, enshrining local cultural values and helping spread new forms of artistic
expression; this will provide a platform for dialogue and thought.
Priority Measures

the creation of a Municipal Cultural Development Committee and encouraging cooperation between institutions at the local, regional and national level;

holding the Puppet Biennial to promote the image of the city at the national and
international level;

building a new site for the São João Fair and promotion of the fair as an event of
national and international importance.
THE
CONSTRUCTION
OF
FACILITIES
AND
THE
SPREAD
OF
TECHNOLOGY
A network of facilities will be created for the spread of technology which enables
everyone to develop their own projects and play a part in important international
developments.
The development of this strategy will lead to the stabilisation of different types of
cultural production, create different types of cultural consumer, encourage the
development of cultural animation and artistic teaching, and foster local cultural
creation; it will involve the creation of small-scale all-purpose facilities in the suburbs
and rural parishes.
Priority Measures

the resolution of the problem of the Municipal Library so that it can become a
great European library, serving not only Évora but also the national and
international academic community, both as a research centre and a venue for
academic meetings; other allied aspects such as book binding and restoration will
be encouraged, and this could lead to the setting up of specialised companies in
Évora;

the conclusion of renovation work at the Garcia de Resende Theatre;

the adaptation of the Salão Central ex-cinema and the EPAC ex-granary for new
cultural uses;

the conclusion of renovation work at the Remédios Convent and its adaptation for
cultural purposes.
SUPPORT FOR ASSOCIATIONS AND POPULAR PARTICIPATION IN THE
CULTURAL EXPERIENCE
Support will be provided for existing social, cultural and sports associations in order
to ensure that all sectors of the population are able to participate in the collective
cultural experience and help build the local cultural identity.
The continued existence of a significant number of associations is one of the main
features of local cultural life, a strategic factor underlying an effective democratic
cultural experience, and one which will play an important role in the preservation of
our cultural identity. However, weaknesses will have to be overcome and new ways
found to support and provide incentives for cultural agents with a view to
strengthening the role of culture in the community.
PRIORITY MEASURES

the drawing up and publication of a District Social and Cultural Agents’ Charter;

a range of different types of support according to quality criteria and how far
targets for support help achieve district strategic objectives;

recognition of the status of association directors.
INCENTIVES AND SUPPORT FOR AND THE PROMOTION OF LOCAL
ARTISTS AND RESEARCHERS
We shall provide incentives and support for local creative artists and researchers as
‘stimulators’ of the collective imagination and promote their activities; this will be
done jointly with educational institutions, which should be encouraged to provide an
artistic, scientific and technological contribution in order to increase their cultural
profile.
Effective cultural democratisation involves not only the creation of new cultural
consumers but also increasing the range of cultural creators and cultural events
producers; cultural supply and demand must be encouraged simultaneously.
Local resources will become increasingly important, incentives will be provided for
artists and creators to settle and work in Évora, and support will provided for
handicrafts; these are some ways of counteracting the current weakness of this sector
of the economy.
PRIORITY MEASURES

creating a Municipal Art Gallery;

creating workshops for local artists;

awarding prizes for cultural creations;

agreements for co-operation between cultural creators, schools and local
associations;

the creation of a school engraving network, a glazed azulejo tile club, concerts for
young people, and literature workshops, for example.
THE CREATION OF NEW GROUPS OF CULTURAL CONSUMERS AND
WIDENING EXISTING GROUPS
Effective cultural democratisation involves not only an increase in cultural
consumption but also the stimulation of a range of intellectual and aesthetic responses
among a variety of groups which become an active and critical audience.
Priority Measures

the creation of a Youth Centre;

the drawing up of programmes for linking schools to local culture (see ‘Incentives
and support for and promotion of local artists and researchers’);

agreements for co-operation between creators, schools and local associations;

the creation of a school engraving network, a glazed azulejo tile club, concerts for
young people, and literature workshops, for example;

the creation of cultural and games activity centres in the rural parishes and
suburbs;

the redefining of a municipal youth policy and support for the Municipal Youth
Committee.
PROMOTING THE CULTURAL INTEGRATION OF THE CITY, SUBURBS,
PARISHES AND THE REGION
This involves creating an integrated area by overcoming barriers in terms of the city,
the suburbs, the rural parishes and the region, in order to encourage a common
cultural experience and diversity of expression in an area with a single identity.
The continued existence of a rural character is a feature of the district’s cultural
identity so the development process should involve the creation of cultural centres in
the parishes and suburbs, and a road network must be created to ease access to these
facilities.
Priority Measures

support for groups and associations based in the Historic City Centre;

a programme of cultural animation for the parishes and suburbs;

the implementation of cultural animation projects in rural parishes;

initial measures involving pilot programmes in two parishes of different types.
THE
PROMOTION
OF
THE
CITY
AT
THE
NATIONAL
AND
INTERNATIONAL LEVEL
The city of Évora, with its particular qualities as a World Heritage site, and the district
are part of a region with a strong cultural identity which is in the process of transition
to modernity; therefore the national and international promotion of the image of the
city should be broadly-based on the full range of strategies, producing modern
phenomena which can take on the role which World Heritage status has played up to
now.
The role of information, new technologies and the setting up of a network of relations
for co-operation between institutions will be extremely important.
Priority Measures

the promotion of an important cultural initiative which contributes to the high
profile of the district at the national and international level;

the setting up of an agency to manage the image;

the publicising abroad of the Puppet Biennial.