We are thrilled to announce that Eutropian‘s short film on Largo Residências, produced for Open Heritage, has been selected in the forthcoming “Toourism” exhibition at Vienna’s Architekturzentrum!
“Transforming a community through responsible tourism” by Levente Polyák and Yilmaz Vurucu tells the story of Largo Residências, a hostel, artist-in-residence programme and café all in one, that opened in the Intendente district of Lisbon, aimed at revitalising the neighbourhood, and create a place for the local population to congregate, while also financing cultural projects and social initiatives through tourism.
Since this video was made in 2019, despite revitalising and re-energising the neighbourhood, and becoming much loved by locals and beyond, Largo had to leave their premises due to the pressure brought on the area by real estate speculation. In the following two years, the collective temporarily used the Largo do Cabeço da Bola Barracks, establishing it as a social and cultural hub. Now Largo Residências is crowdfunding to reclaim the gardens of the Miguel Bombarda Hospital and open them to the public. After standing empty for years, the original building on Largo Intendente is still up for sale.
About “Toourism”
How can we rethink tourism in an era of climate crisis, wars, the threat of further pandemics, a shortage of skilled labour and an ongoing energy crisis, and steer it in a more sustainable direction? What is the role that spatial planning and architecture are playing in this? The exhibition sheds light on key aspects of tourism, such as mobility, city tourism, interdependencies with agriculture, climate change, the privatisation of natural beauty and the change in accommodation typologies. Above all, however, the exhibition looks at the potential for transformation. Learn more about the exhibition.
