EDP Art Reef is an underwater exhibition inaugurated in Albufeira last year
Albufeira mayor José Carlos Rolo has hailed the “very positive” impact of the town’s underwater exhibition, which features 13 artworks by Portuguese artist Vhils and was inaugurated last year.
The ‘EDP Art Reef’ saw the artworks being sunken around one mile off Santa Eulália beach in a bid to not only create a new tourist attraction but also foster new marine life in the area.
Speaking to Lusa news agency, Rolo said that there has been a “lot of demand for diving” in the area since the underwater exhibition was created.
One of its most recent visitors was one of the UNESCO experts who travelled to the Algarve to be updated on the progress of the region’s Algarvensis bid.
“She found out about this and expressed interest in going there. We organised a diving trip, and she was amazed by what she saw,” the Albufeira mayor said.
According to Rolo, the project has been going “very well” although he did not reveal the number of visitors that the exhibition has attracted since its inauguration.
These positive results are being achieved “despite a problem with one piece that shifted slightly due to the currents, but which is being repositioned,” the mayor said, adding that the incident did not cause any issues.
Rolo also highlighted how the EDP Art Reef was named by Time magazine as one of the World’s Greatest Places 2024, and spoke of the project’s importance to underwater biodiversity, stressing that it complements the nearby Algarve Reef – Pedra do Valado Marine Natural Park.
“(The area where Vhils’ works are located) is still a reef. Regardless of it being for diving and to be explored by people, it remains a source of biodiversity,” he added.
José Carlos Rolo also revealed that the municipality now plans to conduct “a photographic report” of the area and film it “to have gradual documentation over time, or even to observe the evolution of species.”
“There are a lot of fish there because they use the space as a refuge, as a nursery,” he explained.
The EDP Art Reef was created after Vhils was challenged to create the artworks by national electricity company EDP using old parts from deactivated EDP plants.
The pieces, which can only be visited through qualified diving companies, were designed to “allow the passage of local fauna, with living corals which were rescued and preserved in captivity implanted at their base.”
The exhibition site is being monitored and will continue to be for the coming years, “remaining available for scientific and environmental study, in addition to its cultural and awareness-raising aspects.”
The project was developed with the support of Albufeira Council, national tourism authority Turismo de Portugal, the University of the Algarve’s Sea Science centre (CCMar) and approved by the Board of Natural Resources (DGRM) and the Portuguese Environmental Agency, while the sinking of the artworks was authorised by the Institute for Nature and Forest Conservation and the National Maritime Authority.
