António Ponte, Director of Soares dos Reis National Museum, was re-elected to DEMHIST – International Committee for Historic House Museums of the International Council of Museums, representing Portugal in this body.
The General Assembly of DEMHIST, in which the new members were introduced, took place this morning, with participation in a hybrid format, combining videoconference participation with the presence of members who are participating in the Annual Conference, taking place in Belgrade, capital of Serbia.
DEMHIST is an international forum for debating problems and solutions related to the conservation and administration of house museums.
One of the committee’s objectives is to create a methodological classification system for the numerous types of historic house museums, aiming to help professionals better understand historic sites and efficiently define their mission and objectives, conservation policy, management, security and communication between these professionals and the public.
This committee is part of the International Council of Museums (ICOM), a global organization of museums and museum professionals. ICOM is dedicated to the promotion and protection of natural and cultural heritage, present and future, material and intangible.
With more than 35,000 members in 135 countries, the ICOM network is made up of professionals covering a wide range of disciplines related to museums and heritage.
ICOM is a non-governmental organization, which maintains a formal relationship with UNESCO and has the status of a consultative body to the United Nations Economic and Social Council.
Curricular Note
Born in Mindelo (Vila do Conde), António Ponte (1970) is Director of Soares dos Reis National Museum since April 2021. Previously, he was Regional Director of Culture of the North (2013-2021), and Director of the Paço dos Duques de Bragança , in Guimarães (2009 and 2012). He developed a large part of his museological career at the Vila do Conde Museum (from 1994 to 2009, and also between 2012-2013), having been linked to several interventions in the field of museology, of which the Alfândega Régia – Naval Construction Museum stands out. / 16th century ship and the renovation of José Régio House.
He holds a PhD in Museology from the Faculty of Arts and Humanities of the University of Porto, and has a degree in Historical Sciences from the Universidade Portucalense (1993), having attended, in the same year, a Postgraduate course in Museology. He would later return to Faculty of Arts and Humanities of the University of Porto to complete his Masters in Museology (2007) with a thesis on the theme of House Museums.