Public appropriations of space: "pracialidades" on buildings at Paulista Avenue - MASP, Cetenco Plaza, and Conjunto Nacional

• Grant number: 15/19178-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: January 01, 2016
• End date: December 31, 2016
• Field of knowledge: Applied Social Sciences - Architecture and Town Planning - Landscaping
• Principal Investigator: Eugenio Fernandes Queiroga
• Grantee: Isabela Luisi Fernandes da Costa
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Arquitetura e Urbanismo (FAU). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Opposed to the appreciation of private and enclosed spaces that prevailed in São Paulo's culture during the 1980's and 90's, nowadays a larger public appropriation of spaces in the city of São Paulo can be observed. The intensive use of parks, squares and streets in some neighborhoods of the capital are observable evidences of this phenomenon. The Paulista Avenue is characterized by being one of those active spaces, attracting thousands of people, especially on weekends. Along with the intensive use that can be seen on the sidewalks, it is possible to realize a strong public appropriation within the ground floor of the buildings of MASP, Cetenco Plaza and the Conjunto Nacional - even though those are not publicly owned spaces. Political demonstrations, leisure, sports and cultural activities often take place in the previously named spaces. The goal of this research is to investigate how privately owned spaces work as areas of public life and interaction in modern São Paulo. With the analysis of the morphology of the avenue and the general typology of its buildings, the intent is to discuss how the architectural form of the chosen objects confirms the existence of public appropriation in those spaces. In addition to that, a reflection about the uses of surrounding buildings and local urban infrastructure as factors that influence the existence of those areas is to be presented.