Dentes de Leão

About this project

<p style="text-align: justify">Dentes de Leão was developed to address cultural and social disparities in the municipalities of Évora and Sardoal, where limited access to cultural activities and low participation in public life—particularly among young people—were pressing issues. These regions also struggled with an ageing population, youth emigration, and poor mobility. The project sought to empower artists and cultural professionals by increasing their visibility, promoting intergenerational collaboration, and leveraging local resources.</p> <p style="text-align: justify">To achieve this, Dentes de Leão brought together young people from Évora, Sardoal, and Lisbon, along with artists from the Évora and Santarém districts. This collaboration produced five new artistic works, showcased in a Participatory Arts Cycle held in all three locations, complemented by a conference and a closing forum. The project also included a training programme on participatory arts, featuring workshops for emerging artists and a course for local cultural agents. A final publication and a documentary were created to capture and share the project’s outcomes.</p> <p style="text-align: justify">The initiative successfully provided young participants with opportunities for creative exchange and personal growth, while artists gained recognition and expanded their professional networks. The main beneficiaries were young people and artists, who gained new skills, broader perspectives, and stronger community ties.&nbsp;</p>

Bilateral cooperation results

The bilateral partnerships with Iceland's Academy of the Senses and Norway's OsloMet significantly enhanced the Dentes de Leão project's outcomes. The Academy of the Senses played a crucial role in artistic development, providing mentorship to Portuguese artists and facilitating the participation of an Icelandic artist, which enriched the project's creative dimension with international perspectives. OsloMet contributed methodological expertise in monitoring and evaluation, strengthening the project's analytical framework and final publication. These collaborations brought credibility and visibility to the initiative, particularly valuable for cultural work in Portugal's peripheral regions where validation is often lacking. At a bilateral level, the partnerships promoted knowledge exchange, with Norwegian input improving evaluation processes and Icelandic involvement enhancing artistic training approaches. The international dimension also expanded networking opportunities for Portuguese participants and increased the project's profile. While the partnerships were productive, their continuation faced challenges due to the project's sustainability limitations. However, some collaboration persisted post-project between the Academy of the Senses and the Portuguese promoter organisation Pó de Vir a Ser, demonstrating the partnership's residual value despite no formal ongoing agreements being in place.

Project partners

• Oslo Metropolitan University Donor project partner· Norway
• Academy of the Senses Donor project partner· Iceland
• Sardoal Municipality Project partner· Portugal
• Pó de Vir a Ser Association Project partner· Portugal
• História da Arte Institute Project partner· Portugal
• COMUNICAÇÃO DA NOVA Institute Project partner· Portugal
• Évora University Project partner· Portugal
• Évora Municipality Project partner· Portugal
• Assimagra Project partner· Portugal