BÈSTIES :
Fantastic Beasts of the Pyrenees
Introduce children from four Catalan schools to the legends and traditions associated with the figures of the ‘Bestiario Festivo’ (Festive Bestiary), through cross-border cooperation and a shared culture.
Partners
Federació Agrupació del Bestiari Festiu i Popular de Catalunya
C. Nou, 27
08620 Sant Vicenç dels Horts (Barcelona)
https://www.bestiari.cat/
Casa del Conflent
18, carrer Aragó
66500 Prade
https://casaldelconflent.cat/
Objectives
The starting point for the Bèsties project (also known as Piribest) is the creation of a festive figure (bèstia) by pupils from four schools on both sides of Catalonia.
– Drawing on the legend that connects it to the community (language and society).
– Imagining and constructing the bèstia (visual and plastic arts).
– Bringing the bèstia to life through the creation of a dance and accompanying music.
The children have had the opportunity to discover the legends and traditions associated with the figures of the ‘Bestiario Festivo’ and appreciate their distinctive features and similarities. This has helped to further raise their awareness of their environment, involving them in the creation of new cultural elements through cross-border cooperation.
Dates : 01/06/2022 – 30/06/2023
Budget : 25 000 €
Project actions
The project was divided into three main phases:
Workshops (September 2022 – March 2023)
Between September 2022 and March 2023, four workshops were held in schools to provide children with various resources focused on creating the legend, building the bèstia and composing the music and dance to accompany it. All this was done with the support of professionals specialising in each of these fields.
Gatherings (April – June 2023)
The second part of the project consisted of two gatherings, one in April 2023 on the northern side and another in June 2023 involving the schools participating in the project.
At these events, each school brought its bèstia and showed the others the music and dance they had prepared.
Documentary (May–July 2023)
A documentary was produced capturing the creative process in each school, as well as the closing ceremony.
Results
The Besties project (also known as Piribest) has been a valuable opportunity to explore the shared cultural roots connecting both sides of the Pyrenees.
During this experience, we have worked with 6 schools, 300 pupils and 24 teachers to create a new dimension in the popular culture that defines this region.
Beyond the figures, Piribest has provided an opportunity to enhance social cohesion and strengthen ties with the communities surrounding each school through popular culture.
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Acknowledgements
This call for microprojects has been funded with the surplus of the Spain–France–Andorra Territorial Cooperation Operational Programme (POCTEFA) 2007–2013, which was transferred to the Member States (Spain and France) as national contributions, thus losing its status as ERDF funds.
This call was managed jointly by all the institutional partners listed below.
With a budget of €575,000, it financed 100% of the eligible expenses of the territorial cooperation micro-projects presented on this website.
