Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara of Grafton Architects released a manifesto in June 2017, choosing FREESPACE as the theme for the16th Venice Architecture Biennale . The idea is that during the exhibition, which runs from May 26 to November 25 in the Italian city, the selected projects from different countries will bring to the discussion the capacity of architecture to mediate the relationship between people and buildings. Empty space is therefore one of the relevant issues, so much so that the architects mention Lina Bo Bardi and the MASP project in the document. “Lina Bo Bardi elevates MASP to create a lookout point so that citizens can enjoy the view over the city,” they exemplify.
With this motto in mind, the curatorship of the Brazilian Pavilion at the Architecture Biennial was entrusted to young architects Gabriel Kozlowski, Laura González Fierro, Marcelo Maia Rosa and Sol Camacho. To compose the Brazilian exhibition, the collective decided to hold several public calls to form the idea of Walls in the Air , which aims to explore the issue of the transposition of borders – material and immaterial – in Brazil and its architecture. Seventeen projects from different regions of the country were selected (out of around 300 entries). Each of them represents a wall – of Brazilian architecture, culture and identity – that the curators believe needs to be overcome.
The exhibition begins with a large room – which reflects the continental size of the country. There, maps are displayed, divided into ten different themes. Each of them presents Brazil's problems on various scales and, in a graphic way, exposes a different aspect of the country and discusses how free the nation is.
Among the selected projects is the
"Urban Florest" , which is being built entirely in wood in the Vila Madalena neighborhood of São Paulo (SP). The project is a partnership between the
forestry company AMATA and the Franco-Brazilian office Triptyque Architecture . Scheduled for 2020, the building's characteristic is mixed use, that is, on 13 floors there are spaces for co-working, co-living, shops and restaurants.
Moradias Infantis, por Rosenbaum e Aleph Zero Arquitetura (Divulgação)
StudioMK27 is represented by the Iguatemi Children's Square project, to be built in a residential area of São Paulo. With a central void, wooden portals would allow children to playfully explore new spaces in this large garden.
Praça Infantil Iguatemi, por StudioMK27 (StudioMK27)
The
Sesc Parque Dom Pedro II project, created by Una Arquitetos , is also on display. The project, which is still under construction, is part of a revitalization plan for the Dom Pedro II park, following the demolition of the São Vito building. The new building, located in front of the Municipal Market, will complement the landscape of downtown São Paulo. Since 2014, SESC-SP has occupied the space with regular outdoor programming. Projeto do SESC Parque Dom Pedro II, por UNA Arquitetos (UNA ARQUITETOS)
But the Dom Pedro II Park project is not the only one from the institution to be part of the
Muros de ar exhibition. The proposal to expand the
Ribeirão Preto unit, created by
the SIAA and HASAA offices, is in Venice. The project maintains the historic SESC building in the city, expands the living areas and invests in large empty volumes and public circulation routes – valuing the integration of the space with its surroundings. Projeto Sesc Ribeirão Preto, pelos escritórios SIAA e HASAA. (SIAA + HASAA)
Atelier Marko Brajovic was also part of the curatorship and brought the installation NSDC , a redesign of city fences. The piece is folded and dialogues with the issue of segregation and separation that fences represent. The name "NSDC", in fact, is an acronym and pays homage to Lina Bo Bardi's stage architecture for the play "In the Jungle of Cities" by Bertold Brecht, staged by Teatro Oficina in the 1960s. See images of the installation below.
