Conservator-Restorer | Current Status of the Profession in Portugal

Abstract

On the 2022 E.C.C.O. - European Confederation of Conservator-Restorers’ Organizations - General Assembly and President’s Meeting at Athens, Greece, the cradle of democracy and oratory, the representatives of the European associations of Conservators-Restorers gathered, on the prospect of showing an overview of the current status of the profession in each country. ECCO challenged the professional associations to address the national legal framework of conservation-restoration in each country, debating the “Achievements and directions in the Þeld of Conservation-Restoration for the sustainable development of Cultural Heritage”, so we, in behalf of the ARP Board President, Rui Borges, had the opportunity to pinpoint the challenges and future prospects on the profession in Portugal and what has been the evolution of the association’s work over the last few years, hoping for a pan European recognition of the uniqueness of the conservator-restorer profession and its important and central role within the cultural heritage sector, not only for its sole beneÞt but for the beneÞt of all that it represents. Amidst the evidence that, for the time being, there is no European-wide solution that is applicable in the speciÞc legal and training context of each country, together, the European associations of Conservators-restorers are treading the path of success and, at this moment, everyone counts. The congregating role of E.C.C.O. becomes essential to navigate among the various European legal frameworks and identify the working tools that guarantee the placement of the regulation of the profession in the national and international policy agendas. Working and collaborating in a network, the successes that each association achieves are reßected in a global process. The present paper translates what was presented at the Meeting, to understand the current status of the Portuguese Conservators-Restorers.