The safekeeping of cultural heritage goes far beyond mere preservation. It involves a continuous process that requires communicating heritage to new generations and engaging them in its discovery and appreciation. To achieve this, actions must be adapted to a contemporary reality where new technologies create a new logic for the production, distribution, and consumption of knowledge.
At the Museu Municipal de Faro, we find one of the most important collections of posters in Portugal. Comprising 330 items from various nationalities, dating from the first three decades of the 20th century, the collection is divided into three major thematic groups: Cinema; Circus, Theatre, and Variety Shows; and Commercial Advertising. It is within this context that the CURATE project was born: Creative Utilization of Revived Artistic Treasures for Education.
Developed in partnership with the Municipal Museum of Faro and with the collaboration of colleagues from the University of Porto, Catholic University, MacKenzie University (Brazil), and I.P. Tomar, this project adopts a transdisciplinary approach to cultural heritage, museology, and education. Based on the digitization of this heritage collection, as recommended in the “C4 Culture” component of the PRR (Recovery and Resilience Plan), its primary goal is to promote dissemination through a digital platform that will offer inclusive access, centered on the development of virtual exhibitions and interactive digital content. This aims to engage the school community, researchers, and the general public in the discovery of visual arts and posters, stimulating creativity and enhancing the media literacy of visitors and users through this collection.
One phase of this project was the creation of a virtual exhibition dedicated to a set of 20 Italian cinema posters (dated 1908-1915), complementing a physical exhibition, both titled “The Rise of Italian Cinema in the Poster Collection of the Museum of Faro,” which will be inaugurated in November 2024.
Designed by a team of curators and researchers from CIAC, the virtual exhibition presents posters reconstituted by AI, videos of some of the films featured in the Museum’s posters, as well as texts and sounds not included in the physical exhibition.
Throughout 2025 and 2026, we intend to continue developing this project by conducting a study on the advertising, circus, theater, and variety show poster collections held at the Museum of Faro, as well as curating a new physical exhibition and creating a second virtual exhibition, all designed to be integrated into the digital platform we plan to launch in 2026.
The virtual exhibition can be accessed here.
Esta publicação também está disponível em: Portuguese (Portugal)