Foi publicado no portal Vitruvius o resultado do concurso para Re-urbanização do campus do Observatório Nacional e Museu de Astronomia, no Rio de Janeiro.
3° lugar – Projeto da arquiteta paisagista Patricia Akinaga, arquiteta Andrea Junqueira Campos e arquiteto Merten Nefs
La Boca, district near the port of Buenos Aires, originated as a traditional worker class barrio of Italian immigrants at the end of the 19th century. Today the “caminito” between the Boca Juniors stadium and the old docks, loaded with souvenir stands and tango shows, attracts thousands of tourists. The old houses in these streets, made of steel cladding, are colorfully painted and house only souvenir shops and restaurants on the ground floor.
Tourists are dropped in masses by organized bus tours, and warned not to wander around the neighborhood, especially the open wasteland behind the stadium with the slums and the area underneath the flyovers, because they could get mugged. There is indeed a bizarre contrast between the small colorful centre and the rest of the former dock worker´s neighborhood in the middle of post-industrial remains.
Does this kind of revitalization, with its thematic scenery and dollars from the tourist industry, help to preserve the culture of the Italian immigrants in Buenos Aires and the local industrial heritage?
Does it reduce the social differences and segregation within La Boca and Buenos Aires as a whole?
And finally, what does it say about the role of architectural heritage in all this?
Investments are made to maintain and transform shantytown-like cabins, favorites of the public, wearing colors they never possessed. At the same time industrial sheds and infrastructure, highly appreciated by the academic world, are rusting away a hundred meters ahead. Perhaps we should alter our standards regarding the value of these structures and their meaning, or try to discover why the “valuable” is not being economically viable at this moment.
Article on industrial heritage in Argentina
www.vitruvius.com.br/arquitextos/arq091/arq091_03.asp
General info on La boca
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Boca
Competition entry by Patricia Akinaga, Andrea Campos and Merten Nefs, for the re-urbanization of the National Observatory campus and Museum of Astronomy in Rio de Janeiro, 2007.
3rd Prize.
The campus is located in São Cristóvão, a historically important area with emperial architecture, facing severe socio-economic problems. The re-urbanization of the campus to accomodate more visitors from the neigborhood, can contribute to the revitalization of the entire region. The project focuses on connection between existing elements, urban lighting and furniture design, the creation of new outside spaces for gathering, education and observation of the sky.
Competition entry by Merten Nefs for the urbanization of the Spier Estate, a vineyard in Stellenbosch, South Africa, 2006.
The program for the masterplan included housing, hotels, a cultural centre, leisure and sports facilities, public space and landscaping. The project proposes a high-density settlement, valorizing the riverbank ecology and the existing colonial architecture on the site.
Uma serie de galpões na rua Borges de Figueiredo, Mooca, foi demolida este mês. Fazia parte do complexo das Industrias Matarazzo, perto do moinho Gamba, mencionado nesse post: www.projetosurbanos.com.br/2007/07/30/moinho-gamba-mooca/
Como muitas vezes acontece, infelizmente, os edifícios históricos foram derrubados pela iniciativa privada – para implantação de torres residencias – antes que o poder público conseguiu tomar decisões em relação ao tombamento e o futuro do local. A prefeitura e a população já sonharam de um parque linear na várzea do rio Tamanduateí.
Para realizar alguma parte desse sonho, precisaria agilizar os projetos e suas bases jurídicas, e talvez frear um pouco a onda atual de construção de condomínios fechados nos bairros industriais como Mooca e Barra Funda, ou vincular os projetos num projeto urbano mais abrangente. Em muitas cidades pelo mundo as áreas disponíveis da desindustrialização – ou sofisticação da produção – estão sendo reservas muito valiosas de terras perto dos centros metropolitanos. Essas reservas são cruciais para absorver crescimentos futuros sem perder área verde e de lazer.
Mais informação:
Demolição de galpões industriais na Mooca: descaso e impunidade, artigo escrito por Cristina Meneguello, Fernanda Valentin, Giancarlo Bertini e Manoela Rufinoni em Minha Cidade (Vitruvius).