United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization Executive Board

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1 ex United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization Executive Board Hundred and fifty-sixth Session 156 EX/44 PARIS, 15 April 1999 Original: Spanish Item 10.3 of the provisional agenda SITUATION OF THE VILLA OCAMPO SUMMARY At the 155th session of the Executive Board, the representative of Argentina made a statement in which he informed the Members of the Board of the joint efforts undertaken by his government and UNESCO to find an institutional formula enabling the Villa Ocampo, a UNESCO property, to be upgraded and to host important cultural activities of national, regional and international significance. Decision required: paragraph 17.

2 156 EX/44 I. BACKGROUND 1. At its 92nd session (April-May 1973) the Executive Board examined the situation arising from the donations made to UNESCO by Victoria and Angélica Ocampo and, having judged them to be viable, authorized the Director-General to accept the donations, which consisted of two properties, the Villa Ocampo, located in the municipality of San Isidro, some 20 km from Buenos Aires, and the Villa Victoria, located in the city of Mar del Plata. 2. It was the wish of Victoria Ocampo, an important writer and intellectual figure in Argentina, as stated in the deed of gift of the Villa Ocampo, that the property should be used for the furtherance of UNESCO s objectives in accordance with its Constitution and the consequent short- or medium-term programme activities approved by the General Conference. Similarly, the deed expressed the donor s wish that the property be used in a living and creative sense, for the purposes of promotion, research, experimentation and development in cultural, literary, artistic and social communication activities aimed at improving the quality of life, communication, international cooperation and peace between peoples of the world. 3. Following the decease of Victoria Ocampo on 27 January 1979, the Director-General informed the Executive Board at its 107th session of the measures taken with regard to the donations, namely that UNESCO had taken possession of the two properties; inventories had been carried out; the donations had been registered with the authorities of the Argentine Republic; and a local administrator responsible for the maintenance of the two properties had been appointed. On the same occasion, the Director-General announced his intention to take steps, in accordance with the provisions of the deed of gift of the Villa Victoria, to sell that property. In his oral reports submitted to the 108th and 109th sessions of the Executive Board, the Director-General provided further information on that matter. 4. In 1980 the Director-General ordered a study to be carried out on all aspects concerning the Villa Victoria, with a view to its possible sale. This took place on 26 January 1981, although it should be noted that the book collection, records and paintings that the property contained were transferred to the Villa Ocampo. The Villa Victoria was purchased by the municipality of General Pueyrredón, in whose area the town of Mar del Plata lies, which has preserved it as part of the historical heritage. 5. With the funds obtained from the sale of the Villa Victoria the Villa Ocampo Special Account was established for the purpose of financing some of the activities carried out in the Villa Ocampo and covering the conservation and maintenance costs. II. SHORT DESCRIPTION OF THE VILLA OCAMPO 6. The property of the Villa Ocampo covers a total area of 11,202 square metres. The house itself, of 1,815 square metres extending over three floors, was built in 1891 by Manuel Ocampo, Victoria Ocampo s father, in a Franco-Victorian architectural style. According to experts in this field, it is regarded as one of the last complete examples of the mansions built along the north shore of the River Plate. 7. It was in this mansion that Victoria Ocampo received as her guests such outstanding figures of universal culture as Rabindranath Tagore, José Ortega y Gasset, Igor Stravinsky, Graham Greene and Roger Caillois, who were just some of the creative artists who visited the premises and left their mark there. Moreover, the Villa Ocampo provides an important

3 156 EX/44 - page 2 testimony to the life and work of Victoria Ocampo herself, one of the most important figures of Argentinian and Latin American cultural life in this century, one of whose constant concerns was to promote dialogue between cultures on a genuinely universal basis. Apart from her literary work, Victoria Ocampo is remembered in Latin America for her outstanding and generous action as a patron of the arts. Among various undertakings using her own resources she founded the literary review Sur, a key publication for the development of many Latin American writers and for publicizing the work of creative writers from other parts of the world. 8. In addition to the artistic, historical and cultural value of the building itself, the Villa Ocampo contains furniture, works of art, photographs, a book collection, engravings and many other objects that belonged to Victoria Ocampo. An inventory of the contents of the house has been carried out under the supervision of the UNESCO representative in Argentina. Both the building and its contents have basic insurance cover. III. CURRENT ACTIVITIES AND CONDITIONS 9. Since taking possession of the house, UNESCO has used it for cultural activities such as exhibitions of paintings and photographs, chamber music concerts, lectures and other events. In 1986 UNESCO established in the Villa Ocampo the Ibero-American Service of Information on Translation (SIIT), which was inspired by one of the intellectual concerns of Victoria Ocampo, who had always attached importance to translation as one of the best ways of facilitating communication between different cultures and knowledge and understanding of them. While it was in operation, SIIT provided specialized information services for translators, interpreters and terminologists and had a library and database on subjects relating to its field of activity. In September 1998 SIIT ceased to operate under the auspices of UNESCO, when the Organization signed an agreement for its transfer to the National Library of the Argentine Republic, with the provision that this prestigious cultural institution would provide an equivalent service based on the experience acquired by SIIT. 10. In 1992 the Fundación Sur, an institution established in 1962 on the initiative of Victoria Ocampo, signed a cooperation agreement with UNESCO with a view to cooperating in the promotion and development of various activities at the Villa Ocampo so as to strengthen its role as a centre for cultural dissemination and the exchange of ideas. 11. In view of the historic and cultural importance of the Villa Ocampo, on 16 May 1997 the Government of the Argentine Republic issued Decree No. 437, in which the mansion was declared to be a National Historic Monument, in accordance with Law No. 12,665 on Museums, Monuments and Historic Sites of the Argentine Republic. 12. At the request of the National Commission of Museums, Monuments and Historic Sites of the Argentine Republic, the body responsible for applying Law No. 12,655, the National Board of Architecture of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Public Works and Services is presently carrying out structural repairs for the conservation of the mansion, with the authorization of UNESCO and with the active participation of the Asociación Por Villa Ocampo, a recently created non-governmental organization. It should be noted that the cost of this work is being borne entirely by the Government of the Argentine Republic.

4 156 EX/44 - page 3 IV. THE FUTURE OF THE VILLA OCAMPO 13. During the last two years, government authorities of the Argentine Republic and the Director-General have held many conversations with a view to finding new institutional responses to the need to raise the profile of the Villa Ocampo as an international cultural centre in keeping with the spirit that led Victoria Ocampo to donate it to UNESCO, while taking into account its present situation as a National Historic Monument. 14. Among other measures, in March 1998 the Director-General ordered that a mission be undertaken to the Argentine Republic, so as to acquire direct knowledge of the problems relating to the physical state of the property, and to carry out consultations with a view to finding, in conjunction with the national authorities and sections of the civil community, a formula to improve the administration and management of the Villa Ocampo. 15. Following this mission, the Argentine authorities and UNESCO agreed on the need to initiate formal consultations so that a non-governmental organization bringing together all those with an interest in the Villa Ocampo would take over its administration and direction with a view to maintaining and conserving it; that organization would also seek to ensure that the Villa Ocampo was used in such a way as to raise its profile as a national and international cultural centre on the understanding that UNESCO would continue to be the owner of the mansion and would monitor: (a) respect for the wishes of the donors; (b) the application of national standards and internationally recognized criteria on the conservation of the historic, artistic and cultural heritage; and (c) the administrative and financial viability of the programme of activities. 16. In response to the offer by the Fundación Sur, which was made at the end of 1998, to take over the administration and direction of the Villa Ocampo, the Argentinian authorities and UNESCO have initiated conversations with that body with a view to determining the conditions under which the Fundación Sur might take on that task. DRAFT DECISION 17. In the light of the foregoing, the Executive Board may wish to adopt the following decision: TheExecutiveBoard, 1. Recalling decision 6.11 adopted at its 92nd session, in which it authorized the Director-General to accept the donation of the Villa Ocampo, 2. Having taken note of the information contained in the present document on the situation of the Villa Ocampo, 3. Recognizing the significance and importance of the Villa Ocampo for the cultural life of Argentina and Latin America in particular, and for the world in general, as well as its status as a National Historic Monument, 4. Urges the Government of the Argentine Republic to continue to participate in devising an institutional solution that would ensure the future development of the Villa Ocampo, and thanks it for its generosity in contributing funds to carry out the work essential for the conservation of the property;

5 156 EX/44 - page 4 5. Authorizes the Director-General to draw up a draft agreement to replace the 1992 Agreement between UNESCO and Fundación Sur, which is still in force, for the purpose of regulating the relationship between UNESCO and Fundación Sur and their respective rights and obligations, with a view to the latter organization taking over responsibility for the direction and administration of the Villa Ocampo, with UNESCO participation. Such a draft agreement should be submitted to the Executive Board at its 157th session for examination and approval.

6 ex United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization Executive Board Hundred and fifty-sixth Session 156 EX/44 Corr. PARIS, 21 May 1999 Original: Spanish Item 10.3 of the provisional agenda SITUATION OF THE VILLA OCAMPO CORRIGENDUM 1. Delete paragraph Replace paragraph 5 of the draft decision with the following text: 5. Authorizes the Director-General to continue consultations, in conjunction with the Government of the Argentine Republic, for the purpose of identifying a nongovernmental organization able and willing to take over responsibility for the direction and administration of the Villa Ocampo, with a view to reaching an agreement; and invites him to report on progress made to the Executive Board at its 157th session.