Project implementation: Brazil
Project development: Brazil
Casa Saracura is part of a series of semi-detached houses built in the 1940s in the Bexiga neighborhood of São Paulo. In response to the current real estate speculation in the neighborhood, the house's renovation seeks to preserve its history by maintaining the original facade and the existing courtyard layout. The design principle reveals the house's original structure, as does the historic retaining wall, characteristic of the neighborhood's existing topography, which appears as a visible element from various rooms.
The Saracura Stream, normally invisible to the eye, runs right behind the property, leaving the retaining wall constantly damp. Given this unique situation, the fountain becomes the project's main symbolic element, evoking the neighborhood's memory. A tank and a waterway were proposed to collect the Saracura's waters and bring them into the courtyard, visible to all.
Located in a central area of São Paulo, Bexiga's boundaries are imprecise, but it can be understood as part of the Bela Vista district, between Paulista Avenue and Bandeira Square (old downtown), and 9 de Julho and 23 de Maio Avenues. With its rugged topography, Bexiga features several channeled waterways, invisible to the eye.
Our proposal for the 14th São Paulo Architecture Biennial seeks to understand the Bexiga region from its physical and geographic perspectives. The starting point is a diptych video: on one side, the fountain is continuously displayed; on the other, images of the urban occupation of the Saracura and Saracura Pequeno streams. These waterways remain invisible, although traces of their existence are revealed in the topography, outcrops, vegetation, and urban design.
Marina Canhadas (São Paulo, 1985), master's degree from FAUUSP, specializing in “Geography, City and Architecture” from Escola da Cidade, architect and urban planner from FAU Mackenzie, is the founder of [entre escalas] and a professor at Escola da Cidade and FAU Mackenzie.
Pedro Kok (São Paulo, 1984), architect from FAUUSP, is a photographer and videographer of architecture, urban structures and cities.