Palácio Marquês de Abrantes | Local Office

The rehabilitation of the Palácio Marques de Abrantes building has in large as its objective the public and community use to support the local population - in an “open door” approach, whereby identified and reclaimed by the community - the strategy aims, cumulatively, to promote the quality of urban life in the Rua da Marvila and of its residents. Designated by Entre Linhas (Between Lines), this participatory project, which occurred between January and February of 2017, gave way to two fronts of differentiated, yet complementary interventions. On one hand, an exhibition of documents (photographs, plans, etc.) occurred, organised by the Artistic Research Centre - Hanger and installed in a small part of the Palácio Marquês de Abrantes. This intervention counted on the participation of five artists who toiled over the history and experiences in this eastern area of Lisbon, with a particular focus on the memories of the working population and their material traces, in contrast to the current state of the neighbourhood and, together, in the resistant struggles waged against the current desertification and socio-spatial isolation of the local community.

On the other hand, the project Entre Linhas implied the installation of an open architecture studio - local support office at Rua de Marvila - promoted by Ateliermob, within the intervened exhibition space, also as a test of occupation and future use of this outfit. The work was developed during working hours, being presented to the community on a weekly basis. A logic consisted of involving the residents in a participatory process where there would inhabit the individual memories of the places with the possible strategies and collective plans for the future. The debate of collected ideas, which constituted a base of prior knowledge of architecture for the rehabilitation of the Palácio Marquês de Abrantes. It was encouraged by the formal organization of round tables that counted on the participation from the residents of Rua de Marvila, and also, allies of this cause and process. In addition to the playful character, the initiative sought to attract more and more local residents, in this way demonstrating the cumulative potential of the Palácio Marquês de Abrantes, through familiar use.