VALUING THE COMMON LANDS OF REBORDINHO AND MALHADOURO
Document exhibition and documentary film
Opening: July 25th at 6pm
Open to the public: from July 26th to 31st, 2024, from 9am to 8pm
Former Rebordinho Primary School (Campia, Vouzela)
A co-production between Binaural Nodar and the Local Community of the common land of Rebordinho and Malhadouro, with the support of the Municipality of Vouzela and the Campia civil parish.
In Portugal, the origin of the “baldios”, community-owned lands, dates back to before the nation was founded. Because of their role in the subsistence of rural communities, their importance throughout the country’s rural history is unquestionable.
The concept of common land has long been part of the worldview of rural populations, especially those in the north and center of Portugal. Often, when the inhabitants themselves try to explain what common land is, they use a very curious expression: “it’s land that belongs to everyone and belongs to no one”.
Historically, these areas were used to graze the communal cattle of the villages and to collect the undergrowth that served as bedding, which in the spring were used to fertilize the farmland. Although the original function of the common land has changed in recent decades, especially after the revolution of April 25th, 1974, the common lands remain with a vigor that depends on who manages them, be it the civil parishes or the common lands’ community boards. In the municipality of Vouzela, there is an exemplary case of perseverance and adaptation to new realities: The Local Community of the Common Land of Rebordinho and Malhadouro, located in the civil parish of Campia.
Binaural Nodar was invited to carry out a documental and audiovisual work, to organize a retrospective exhibition and create a documentary film about the history of the Rebordinho and Malhadouro common lands, whose first actions for their constitution date back to 1978, a few years after the Democratic Revolution. These decades later, the Local Community of the Common Land of Rebordinho and Malhadouro is a dynamic project that is attentive to the economic possibilities of managing its geographical area, making it possible to obtain resources that are applied in actions that contribute to the well-being of the populations, including the construction of walls, the widening of roads, initiatives to combat the Asian wasp, etc.
The exhibition and documentary “Valuing the Common Land of Rebordinho and Malhadouro”, which mark the commemoration of 30 years of the organization’s activity, will be shown in the context of a community event that will take place on July 25th at 6pm in the former elementary school in Rebordinho. The event will conclude with musical entertainment, open to the community.
The Local Community of the Common Land of Rebordinho and Malhadouro and Binaural Nodar would like to thank the following for their contribution to the exhibition: Amadeu Soares, António Carvalho, Celestino Tavares, José Luís Tavares and Regina Soares. They would also like to thank the newspaper Notícias de Vouzela for providing news items from its historical archives on the Rebordinho and Malhadouro common lands.
Finally, thanks to the people interviewed for the documentary on the history of the Local Community of the Common Lands of Rebordinho and Malhadouro: Albano Rodrigues, Amadeu Soares, António Batista, António Carvalho, António Mário de Almeida, Aventino Pereira, Carlos Batista, Carlos Duarte, Carlos Oliveira, Celeste Fernandes, Celestino Tavares, Fernanda Eirinha, Fernando Eirinha, Fernando Morgado, Fernando Tavares Pereira, João Carlos Gralheiro, João Miguel Marques, José Luís Tavares, José Ribeiro, José Rodrigues, Pedro Nuno Tavares, Regina Soares and Telmo Antunes.
Credits:
Sound and audiovisual recordings: Ana Margarida Ferreira and Liliana Silva
Interviews conducted by: Andreia Mota
Photographic recordings: Liliana Silva
Audiovisual and graphic editing: Liliana Silva
Writing and proofreading: Andreia Mota and Luís Costa
Binaural Nodar is a cultural organization supported by the Portuguese Republic – Culture | Directorate-General for the Arts.