Urban Think Tank's Research on São Paulo Audi Urban Future Initiative 2012

Transcription

1 EXAMINES Urban Think Tank's Research on São Paulo Audi Urban Future Initiative 2012 Urban Think Tank (U-TT) is one of the five architectural offices that were selected to develop a vision on future urban mobility for the Audi Urban Future Award 2012, an international architecture competition that focuses on specific mobility scenarios in five metropolitan regions. Urban Think Tank is asked to address the challenge of producing a concept that takes account of the situation in the PUBLISHED Wednesday October 17, 2012 BY Alfredo Brillembourg and Hubert Klumpner THEMES AND TOPICS Infrastructure, infrastructure, Metro Cable, barrio, urbanization, São Paulo, Architecture and Urban Planning, Politics and Policy, Award 2012 LOCATIONS Caracas Rua Arapiraca 231 Vila Madalena Sao Paulo, Brazil

2 São Paulo metropolitan region and its specific infrastructure. U-TT was established in Caracas, Venezuela, in 1998 by Alfredo Brillembourg and Hubert Klumpner as codirectors. Since 2007, Brillembourg and Klumpner have taught in New York at Columbia University s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation, where they founded the Sustainable Living Urban Model Laboratory (S.L.U.M. Lab), and, since 2010, they hold the chair for Architecture and Urban Design at ETH/Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich. Projects a n d Award s Among the firm s recently completed projects is the Urban Metro-Cable System (2010) in Caracas. Integrated into the city s existing transportation system, it was conceived through a cross-disciplinary and participatory approach to urban planning that involved a public symposium attended by architects, planners, activists, and barrio leaders to put forth innovative alternatives for urban mobility. Grotão Community Center (under construction) is a mixed-use project located in the heart of the Paraisópolis favela of São Paulo, an isolated area where erosion and mudslides have rendered the site a primarily inaccessible void in the city s dense fabric. The terraced design stabilizes the site, transforms Grotão into a natural arena that reestablishes circulation connections, and introduces social programs, including sports facilities, urban agriculture, public space, transportation infrastructure, replacement housing, and a music school. The partners are recipients of the Swedish Association of Architects 2010 Ralph Erskine Award for their innovative efforts to improve living conditions in some of the world s poorest communities and the Holcim Awards Gold 2011 Latin America for the Grotão Community Center. Metro Cable in San Agustín, Caracas, Venezuela ( ) Arch itects Arch itects Alfredo Brillembourg received his master s degree in architectural design from Columbia University in 1986 and earned a second architecture degree from the Central University of Venezuela in Since 1994, he has been a member of the Venezuelan Architects and Engineers Association and a guest professor at the University José Maria Vargas, the University Simon Bolívar, and the Central University of Venezuela.

3 Hubert Klumpner graduated from the University of Applied Arts in Vienna in 1993 and received a master s degree in architecture and urban design from Columbia University in Since 2001, he has been urbanism consultant of the International Program for Social and Cultural Development in Latin America (OAE and UNESCO). Metro Cable in San Augustín, Caracas, Venezuela ( ) Local curator: Ligia Nobre Collaborators: ETH / Swiss Institute of Techonology Zurich, Columbia University New York / SLUM Lab Grotao Community Center in São Paulo, Brazil ( ) Rusaifah Community Center Vertical Gym #5 in Amman- Russaifah, Jordan (2010) Metropolita n Reg ion: S ã o Pa u lo, B ra s il Rapid urbanization throughout São Paulo s greater metropolitan region has created an urban condition in which the established, rigid systems of mobility are no longer effective. The modernist idea of what the city should be no longer matches the reality of what the city has become. Our project is a direct response to a framework that no longer functions effectively, and we aim to develop new methods and modes of mobility as a reaction to this current situation. To this end, we envision flexible mobility systems that will both enable and inspire spontaneous, informal gatherings and productive activity as a means to revive the street, while simultaneously addressing concerns about transportation, livelihood, health, and environment. Surfaces that have been viewed as static can be reprogrammed, either permanently or temporarily, to make them more flexible and multifunctional and open them to a greater diversity of activity. Hybrid energy systems and their connection to new modes of mobility can also be explored.

4 São Paulo We are interested in mobility not merely in the physical sense of moving from point A to point B, but in greater definitions of mobility, including economic, social, and cultural mobility. Mobility is not simply about reaching a destination, but about transforming the individual. The aim of our research is to determine the opportunities for these new methods and modes within São Paulo. São Paulo is one of the most vibrant cities in South America, with a greater metropolitan population of almost twenty million and a long history of both formal and informal development. Since the 1930s, government investment has been geared toward the growth of an extensive car infrastructure, a trend that has affected investment in alternative modes of mass transit and resulted in current issues of congestion and infrastructure limitations. This is a key component of the larger, unequal urbanization process, in which the population density in the central region of the city is reduced, while the occupation of peripheral areas increases. As a consequence, the majority of people within the metropolis face both social and territorial immobility. For current and future Paulistas, we must negotiate a balance in space and pace within the city. Innovative new modes and pathways of transport are needed to make São Paulo an accessible and inclusive space for all of its inhabitants. To achieve this, we are examining the current programs and pathways in both favelas and downtown areas to discover new patial possibilities and ways to bridge the divide in mobility between these two spaces. We are interested in reprogramming and reimagining systems and surfaces in order to imbue them with activity, life, and purpose,

5 thereby engendering community and revitalizing spaces across São Paulo s vast urban landscape. São Paulo FURTHER READING u-tt. com THIS ARTICLE IS DOWNLOADED FROM mooov e. com/urbanthink-tank

6 Article Media From left: Hubert Klumpner and Alfredo Brillembourg of Urban-Think Tank Metro Cable in San Agustín, Caracas, Venezuela ( ) Metro Cable connects to the Caracas public transportation system with the yellow areas marking the integration zones between the two. The five new stations are not only transit stops, they also include spaces for sport, culture, education, administration, commerce and public greenery. São Paulo São Paulo Grotao Community Center in São Paulo, Brazil ( ) Rusaifah Community Center Vertical Gym #5 in Amman-Russaifah, Jordan (2010) Metro Cable in San Augustín, Caracas, Venezuela ( ) Metro Cable in San Augustín, Caracas, Venezuela ( ) São Paulo Region Audi Urban Future Initiative