The city’s year-long celebration programme culminates on Portimão’s Dia da Cidade, December 11, with tributes, shows and an exhibition of 100 future projects.
On December 11, Portimão will conclude the year-long celebrations of its “city” status with a day dedicated to the past, present, and future. The day will include the inauguration of an exhibition showcasing 100 projects designed to shape the next decade and a tribute to “citizens and entities relevant to the affirmation of Portimão’s identity.”
“It was precisely a century ago that the city initiated a path of growth and progress, following the elevation of the then “Vila Nova de Portimão” by his most illustrious son, Manuel Teixeira Gomes, President of the Portuguese Republic, in 1924”, highlights mayor of Portimão, Álvaro Miguel Bila.
The celebrations of December 11, City Day in Portimão, will start at 09h00 in the Largo 1º de Maio with the Raising of the Flag and a performance of the national anthem by singer Joana Pires.
At 10h00 in the Town Hall, honorary titles will be awarded to ten citizens who have distinguished themselves for their contribution to society, preceded by speeches by the president of the Municipal Assembly of Portimão, Isabel Guerreiro, and the mayor of Portimão, Álvaro Bila.
In the afternoon, starting at 14h30, a special session will award commemorative medals to figures who have held political positions, associations and collectivities, shops, and commercial establishments, publicly recognising their fundamental role in the progress and development of Portimão.
Between 12h00 and 19h00, on Praça 1.º de Maio, Johann Le Guillerm’s itinerant installation “La Transmutante” will amaze the crowds.
At 17h30, the exhibition “Portimão 2034 – The Future in 100 Projects” will be inaugurated in the emblematic Al-Faghar building. Spread over four floors, the exhibition combines tradition and innovation, presenting projects that promote urban regeneration, environmental sustainability and social innovation.
To close the day’s celebrations, at 19h00, the local community will gather in the Praça da República to sing “Happy Birthday” to their city. This will be followed by a tasting of the giant birthday cake.
Beyond City Day
Many other events still make up the festivities that mark the 100th anniversary of the city of Portimão, such as:
On December 7 at 17h00, the exhibition “Querubim Lapa: Painting and Ceramics” will be inaugurated at the Museum of Portimão. Displayed until April 27, this exhibition evokes the Portimão-born artist’s centenary with a collection of the significant work he developed for modern art in Portugal.
On December 9 at 18h00, the album “Portimão – 100 Years, 100 Photographs” by Carlos Osório is scheduled to be launched in the auditorium of the Museum of Portimão.
On December 10 at 21h00, TEMPO will host the commemorative concert of the city’s 100th anniversary, “Gente Singular“, composed by Bernardo Sassetti in 2010 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Manuel Teixeira Gomes’s birth.
On December 14, honouring one of Portugal’s most renowned landscape architects, the Gonçalo Ribeiro Telles Garden will be inaugurated. This new green leisure space in the heart of Portimão, featuring native vegetation, covers 12,000m².
The detailed programme of the festivities can be found here.
