The "Ventos do Povo" exhibition will be on display at the Faro District Archives

The Spanish Ministry of Culture, in conjunction with the Directorate-General for Books, Archives and Libraries, is opening today at the Faro District Archives the exhibition "People's Winds. Of Iberian Revolutions and Transitions (1974-1977)", as part of the cultural programme "Portugal-Spain – 50 years of culture and democracy", organised by both countries.

The exhibition, curated by Rafael R. Tranche and Carla Baptista, proposes a shared journey through a careful selection of 70 photographs that illustrate the end of two long Iberian dictatorships and the beginning of democratic regimes.

Although different in their formation, a central aspect brings together the 25th of April and the Spanish transition: the emergence of social movements that demanded the real democratization of each process.

Organized into five thematic sections — “Today Everything Begins,” “The People on the Street,” “From the Center to the Periphery,” “Freedom of Expression,” and “The Revolution of Bodies” — the exhibition not only documents, but also challenges.

Through photography as an aesthetic and political tool, visitors are invited to reflect on recent history through its forms of visual representation.

In both countries, a unique generation of photographers took their cameras to the streets, applying expressive formulas and innovative languages. The end of censorship allowed the emergence of countless publications, in both traditional and alternative media. Here, images were reproduced and amplified, becoming symbols of a new historical era.

The exhibition «Winds of the People. Of Iberian Revolutions and Transitions (1974-1977)» can be seen at the Faro District Archives, from July 29 to September 15.

Program »Portugal-Spain: 50 Years of Culture and Democracy»

Through temporary exhibitions, concerts, theater, film series, and literary lectures, this cross-cultural program aims to bring citizens closer to the relevance of the political, social, and cultural processes that took place in the Iberian Peninsula during the 1970s and culminated in the end of dictatorial regimes in both countries, giving way to democracy.

The result of this binational work has resulted in an extensive program of cultural activities that have been taking place in both countries since 2024.

Examples of this are the concerts by the Lisbon Metropolitan Orchestra at the National Music Auditorium in Madrid, and the RTVE & Marta Menezes Symphony Orchestra in Valença do Minho; or the film series "The Constellation of Carnations. Revolutionary Imaginaries in Portugal" organized by the Spanish Film Library; as well as the celebration of the reciprocal programs "Cultura Portugal" and "Showcase Spain".