Adega

PELE – Associacao Social e Cultural
15. – 30. April 2022
Porto, Portugal

The Azevedo neighbourhood is located on the western outskirts of Porto. The local socio-cultural association Pele is developing a cultural centre for and with the local neighbourhood in a collaborative process. After renovating a vacant wing of the former, ruined winery as an initial contact point, the aim was to appropriate the associated outdoor space and make it usable for events.

The first step was to engage with the site and its neighbourhood. Through playful ‘archaeological’ excavations with pupils from the local primary school, we approached the site at a low-threshold level; artefacts and stories were collected and presented to the neighbourhood in a temporary exhibition.

In conversations with local residents, it became clear that the loss of jobs in the neighbourhood also meant the loss of local social meeting places. This included the wine bar attached to the winery – commonly referred to as an adega in Portuguese.

It quickly became clear that reviving the spirit of the former adega was essential to creating a new gathering place for the neighbourhood. The first spatial interventions focused on building basic furniture to make the open space functional. Simple wooden structures were assembled in participatory workshops with volunteers.

The central idea was to establish a space for exchange—whether for workshops, communal lunches, or as a new meeting spot for older residents. In a collective effort, the word adega was erected in the square in an oversized format. Additionally, a grandstand was integrated into the ruins, providing a stage for performances by the association’s own theater group and a venue for events of all kinds.