Uniting Colours — Alexandra de Cadaval
INDIA AND AFRICA MAY HAVE DEFINED ALEXANDRA DE CADAVAL'S CAREER, BUT IT’S ÉVORA WHERE SHE SHOWCASES THE WORLD’S ARTS AND MUSIC.
A LOVE LETTER TO DIVERSITY.
SANDRA NOBRE
Words
PEDRO FERREIRA
Portrait
Arriving in India in 2006 was epic for Alexandra de Cadaval. She had travelled with no expectations, neither of what she would find, nor what she would feel. Her initial objective was to learn and practise yoga for two months, but her stay extended to 11 years. "When you arrive, there’s a simultaneous assault on all your senses. The gulf between extreme poverty and wealth changes you, kick-starting a discovery and self-awareness." Thanks to her mother she became interested in sacred music, while meeting artistic director Alain Weber led to an enthusiasm for traditional song. "This is endangered heritage that needs preserving," she argues. Such a cultural mission was added to a humanitarian one, which saw her travel to Mozambique. This offered another discovery: "If India showed me a spiritual dimension, Africa made me sense mother earth, roots and all humanity".
To repay what she had learnt, she continued working with traditional music through cultural projects for humanitarian causes, supporting the reintegration of people suffering from AIDS and combating leprosy: "I was very moved by what I saw. We can't change the world, but we can change people’s lives." While on the continent, she discovered contemporary African art, which she would help promote abroad, alongside curator André Magnin.
Tracing
a cultural map
Alexandra was born into a family that has helped write the history of Portugal, from Nuno Álvares Pereira (the first Duke of Cadaval). Currently, the eleventh honorary title is held by Diana Álvares Pereira de Melo, eldest daughter from the second marriage of Jaime Álvares Pereira de Melo (tenth Duke of Cadaval) to Claudine Marguerite Marianne Tritz. The couple's second daughter, Alexandra, alongside her sister, is the guardian of the family estate’s cultural treasures. The weight of such a title has meant going the extra mile in all aspects of life. "We were born with a silver spoon in our mouths, but we’re very down to earth. My mother always worked, took risks and was bold in her time, and my father was very generous to those who needed help. Those values and background demanded more from me, but all my choices have been made with my heart," she says.
Driven by creativity, honesty, spirituality and humanity, she has always gone her own way. Her mother's past connection with fashion – she was a model for YSL, Givenchy and Chanel, and responsible for opening Valentino’s first shop in Paris, and Giorgio Armani’s presence in the USA – has become more evident in their work together. This has happened with the exhibition LOVE - Marrakech Opened My Eyes to Colour by Yves Saint Laurent. "I'm discovering a bit more about her life stories with Yves Saint Laurent and other designers because of this exhibition, which brings the three of us together."
Before she got here, Alexandra studied cultural industries in London, as well as organising and directing music and culture festivals, such as the Évora Clássica Festival, Os Orientais, the Évora Africa Festival and the World Sacred Spirit Festival in India. In 2018, she presented the largest exhibition of contemporary African art ever held in Portugal at the Duques de Cadaval Palace in Évora. During the pandemic, she led the restoration of the 14th-century Loios Church, which was built upon the ruins of an Arab castle and reopened in February. The palace reopens with an exhibition dedicated to the kingdom of Morocco, in partnership with the Fondation Pierre Bergé - Yves Saint Laurent.
"We want to offer a regular and unique international programme that boasts temporary contemporary art exhibitions and puts the Alentejo region on Portugal's cultural map." At the same time, she’s preparing the first Sacred Music Festival, in São Miguel (Azores), not to mention mulling other potential projects after a recent trip to Mexico. Although still tenuous, the chance to explore the traditions of another culture, another country, another continent, other colours, has got her creative juices flowing.
