Publicomos

Notice (permalien)

Réf.

42329

Type

conference item

Titre

Heritage or theme park? Some reflections from Portuguese experiences

Langues

English

Auteurs

Ferreira, Teresa

Date

21/05/2012

Pages

p. 587-591

Titre de conférence

ICOMOS 17th General Assembly

Lieu de conférence

Paris, France

Date de conférence

2011-11-27 / 2011-12-02

Mots-clés

sustainable development / cultural heritage / cultural identity / cultural significance / public awareness / cultural routes / tourism management / tourism / tourist industry / sustainable tourism / tourism impact / economic value / interpretation / threats / marketing / strategy

Pays mentionnés

Portugal

Monuments et sites

Guimaraes, Portugal / Road of Românico, Portugal / Monastery of Santa Maria de Pombeiro, Felgueiras, Portugal

N° Patrimoine mondial

1031

Résumé en anglais

This proposal will use Portuguese examples to reflect on the relation between heritage and tourism, namely on the threats and the opportunities that it faces, as well as on the strategies and tools available for its more desirable sustainable development. Over the last two centuries, we have witnessed not only a greater awareness of the importance of architectural heritage as a historical and material document, but also a popularization of old structures as the chosen portraits of national, aesthetic, religious and political meaning. In the twenty-first century, the era of globalization and information, heritage is being re-assessed as a document for promoting our identity and collective memory. ‘Artificial memories’, developed via electronic and digital means, contribute to a growing ‘cult of monuments’ and to their superficial appropriation, which may lead to the misinterpretation of a site’s authenticity and significance. The complex, dynamic and multiple meanings developed for cultural heritage are often reduced to a self-referential cult of generic, even ‘narcissistic’, identity, playing the role of a large mirror in which we can contemplate our ideal and desired image (Choay, 1992). Furthermore, the economic sustainability of heritage requires restoration, tourism and marketing, all of which inevitably submit structures to an exhibition process that removes them from their original contexts. As a result, Heritage develops into another 'site' for general public consumption and entertainment, just like the shopping malls, stadia or theme parks.
Hence, how to resist to tourism industry economics’ pressure? How to minimize the negative impacts of tourist consumption? How can we find a balance between the day-to-day management of our monuments (tours, souvenirs, events, etc) and the provision of historical and architectural experience? Is tourism the only solution for architectural heritage management? Heritage facing the challenge of tourism: what strategies, what tools?After an introductory reflection on the subject, some critical or positive Portuguese examples and guidelines are proposed for discussion.

URL

http://www.icomos.org/en/component/content/article?catid=157

Document joint

III-2-Article3_Ferreira.pdf

Licence

Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (BY-NC-ND)