WOOL 
WOOL TALKS 2025
June 27, 2025
Talk 01 – “From 1.3% to 23%: public space as a terrain for cultural democracy,”
Talk 02 – “Before and After: public art and contextualization”
Guided tour of the WOOL Urban Art Route
WOOL TALKS provided simultaneous translation in English-Portuguese-English and Spanish-English-Spanish.
CIEC – Covilhã Business Innovation Center _ Rua António Augusto Aguiar, 60
The 2025 edition of WOOL | Covilhã Urban Art was supported by Turismo de Portugal / Turismo Centro Portugal – Portugal Events incentive, Covilhã City Council, the “la Caixa” Foundation in collaboration with BPI, the Spanish Embassy in Portugal, and patrons REN – Redes Energéticas Nacionais, Farmácia Covilhã, União de Freguesias de Covilhã e Canhoso. It is also sponsored by Tintas CIN and a number of other national and local companies. (complete list at www.woolfest.org).
After introducing a new program block last year at WOOL | Covilhã Arte Urbana, focusing exclusively on thinking about Art and Culture, contextualizing them in the reality of our festival and territory, in the 2025 edition, WOOL TALKS returned with a smaller format, but one that equally expanded the sharing of knowledge and experiences.
On June 27, 2025, we returned to CIEC – Covilhã Business Innovation Center, a venue that has welcomed us so warmly, for two presentations that prompted pertinent reflections on creation in public spaces, democracy, and cultural accessibility, all of which are relevant and urgent topics for debate in the current scenario of our country, which continues to aspire to be more inclusive, cohesive, and decentralized, including culturally.
OPENING Session
Lara Seixo Rodrigues, co-founder of WOOL
José Miguel Oliveira, Councillor of Covilhã City Council
TALK 01
“From 1.3% to 23%: public space as a terrain for cultural democracy”
In the early hours of May 19, journalist Bárbara Reis (Público) reminded us that, in six years, Chega went from 1.3% to 23%. This fact (also stated six years ago by the party’s president) can be analyzed from various points of view: political, historical, sociological. We can talk about education and the media. But we must also talk about culture. Why are people, especially younger people, attracted to authoritarian views and hate speech? Since defending democracy is a joint effort, what is the specific role of culture? When cultural democracy and citizen participation are desired, how important is public space in the process?
TALK 01 of this second edition of WOOL TALKS brought us together and led us through a series of questions and reflections on the current state of our country, where very little or nothing is said about cultural policies and the impact that the growth of the far right will have on the cultural sector and, consequently, on all our lives. Paths and solutions were outlined, and public space was presented as a central part of this transformation.
Speaker:
Maria Vlachou, consultant in Cultural Management and Communication and executive director of Acesso Cultura (Greece/Portugal)
Moderator:
Paulo Fernandes, Mayor of Fundão, founder and president of the Schist Villages Network and founder of the Historic Villages Network of Portugal (Portugal)
TALK 02
“Before and After: public art and contextualization”
Unlike indoor painting exhibition spaces, public spaces are not neutral. They involve what is often referred to as the “context” of the works, which influences the maturation of artistic projects through the architecture, landscape, or history of the places. Throughout this TALK 02, it was demonstrated in a practical way, through “before/after” images, how context feeds or should feed artistic interventions in urban, rural, or heritage environments.
Speaker:
Olivier Landes, geographer, urban planner, researcher, and artistic director of the Art en Ville association (France)
Moderator:
Doug Gillen, filmmaker, curator, and cultural commentator (United Kingdom)
Guided tour of the WOOL Urban Art Route, led by curator and WOOL co-founder Lara Seixo Rodrigues.