Casa da Arquitectura – Centro Português de Arquitectura and the Centre for Social Studies of the University of Coimbra presented “What? When? Why not? Portuguese Architecture”. The exhibition opened at the Casa Gallery on 29 October 2021 and will remain open until 24 April 2022.
Curated and designed by Jorge Figueira and Bruno Gil, the exhibition is part of the FCT-funded research project, “(EU)ROPA – Rise of Portuguese Architecture”, based at the Centre for Social Studies, University of Coimbra.
The aim of the project, of which the exhibition is a public reflection, is to identify, problematise and disseminate the concept of “Portuguese architecture” in the national and international context, confronting its history, ideas and methods with a changing world. Although of recurrent use in architectural debate, and not only, the expression ‘Portuguese architecture’ has had several meanings over time, and deserves to be seen from various perspectives and in relation to contemporary debates. It is also the aim of the project/exhibition to open up the discussion to a wider public, presenting the theme in various disciplinary and interdisciplinary dimensions, and inviting different sensibilities.
The exhibition was accompanied by an International Conference, with the same name, which took place on 30 October at Casa da Arquitectura, where the project coordinators, Jorge Figueira and Bruno Gil, and the core researchers, Ana Vaz Milheiro, Carlos Machado e Moura, Carolina Coelho, Eliana Sousa Santos, Gonçalo Canto Moniz, José António Bandeirinha, Luís Miguel Correia, Nuno Grande, Patrícia Santos Pedrosa, Rui Lobo, presented the ongoing research.
Hans Ibelings was the keynote speaker, with a reflection on peripheral and central cultures in the context of European architecture.
The closing presentation was given by Cristiane Muniz, director of Escola da Cidade and Fernando Viégas, president of Associação Escola da Cidade, São Paulo.
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Curators
Bruno Gil
Bruno Gil is an architect and post-doctoral researcher at the Centre for Social Studies (University of Coimbra), where he co-coordinates the research project “(EU)ROPA”. He is a visiting Assistant Professor at the Department of Architecture at the University of Coimbra, in the areas of Theory and History.
In 2017, he completed his PhD thesis entitled “Cultures of Research in Architecture: lines of thought in research centres, 1945-1974”, distinguished with the Nuno Teotónio Pereira Prize, in its first edition in 2019, and finalist of the XII edition of the biennial Iberian competition for PhD theses, Arquia/tesis 2019.
Since 2019, he is co-coordinator of “Joelho – Revista de Cultura Arquitectónica”, published by the editorial e|d|arq (DARQ UC), where he is also co-coordinator of the editions with Armando Rabaça.
In 2019, he co-founded the international workshop “CASA – Coimbra Architecture Summer Atelier” and continues its general coordination, after two first editions “CASA ORIGIN” (2019) and CASA “EMERGENCE” (2021).
With a cultural approach to teaching and research in architecture, by simultaneously targeting the specificities of its places and knowledge transfer networks, he has written articles for publications such as “Footprint: DDelft architecture theory journal”, “arq: Architectural Research Quarterly”, “Docomomo Journal”, “Writingplace Journal” and “Joelho – Revista de Cultura Arquitectónica”.
Jorge Figueira
Jorge Figueira graduated in Architecture from the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Oporto (1992) and gained his PhD from the University of Coimbra (2009). He is an associate professor and was director of the Department of Architecture of the Faculty of Science and Technology of the UC between 2010 and 2017. Researcher and vice-president of the scientific board of the Centre for Social Studies, UC. External member of the General Council of ISCTE-IUL (2017-2021). Visiting researcher at the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism, University of São Paulo (2018) and visiting professor at the Escola da Cidade, São Paulo (2020, 2018, 2016, 2012). Author of books such as “A periferia perfeita. Pós-modernidade na arquitectura portuguesa. Anos 1960-1980” (Caleidoscópio, 2014). Curator of exhibitions, among which, “Físicas do Património Português. Arquitetura e Memória”, Museum of Popular Art, Lisbon (2018/2019), “Oscilações. Eduardo Souto de Moura”, Camões-Centro Cultural Português in Maputo and Beira, Mozambique (2016), “Álvaro Siza. Modern Redux”, Tomie Ohtake Institute, São Paulo (2008). He has presented his research at universities and institutions in several countries, including at the Society of Architectural Historians and the European Architectural History Network. He has published articles in several international journals and magazines. Expert for the “European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe Award”. He is responsible for the cultural area of the National Board of Directors of the Portuguese Architects’ Association.