More Than Architecture

Architects usually begin their training at a school of fine arts. An example of this are the projects pursued by students in order to get a diploma of architecture (CODA), which are devised within a studio/workshop environment. 

Some of these projects comply with practical demands, other projects explore a more abstract component, whereas others reflect a more theoretical nature, but all seek peer validation concerning their thinking and the process of making architecture.

However long an architect might stay outside Portugal, whether for professional, family or political reasons, such travels are part of the personal journey of many architects represented at the Marques da Silva Foundation, although all of them have actually followed the movements that have marked the history of architecture.

Their contacts with leading names on the international scene, internships spent in studios of prominent architects or attending courses at the best schools of architecture proved to be of enormous importance, not only regarding their individual paths, but  mainly in the context of the architecture of a country that remained closed to the world until 1974.

Travelling has always been part of an architect’s training, as no description or image can replace the personal experience of perceiving the multidimensional features of a city or building. 

Travel influences architectural production and thinking and constitutes a learning process of their own that reflects in shapes, both past and present, the universal sense of the visual and constructive creation of architecture. 

These journeys, whether across the country or around the world, can be remarkable at an individual level, but some of them have also captured the collective imagination of Portuguese architects.

The projects archived at the Marques da Silva Foundation, many of them erected, others just designed, became examples of the symbolic importance that buildings can have in the life of cities, whether initially or over time, demonstrating the transformative  powers of architecture. 

Some examples are the Casa de Serralves, a private building that became Porto's main cultural centre; the Escola do Castelo, an example of integration in Lisbon's historic centre; the City Council of Matosinhos, a public building that shaped the country's democratic history; or the tower designed by Távora for Aveiro’s city centre that never got off the drawing board, but which would have given a more cosmopolitan feel to the somewhat provincial atmosphere of the city.

Writing, even if often due to the obligation of taking academic examinations or responding to commissions, is a frequent field of research for architects. 

Through writing, architects lay down their most theoretical thinking, produce historiographies, and stack scattered records. Architects often see a book as a construct, which is perceptible not only in the layout of their publications, but also in the graphic design of their covers and content.