Following the donation of Paulo Mendes da Rocha's complete archive to the Casa da Arquitectura in Portugal, a major debate arose in Brazil, with many expressing regret over seeing the physical documentation of his intellectual and built work leave the country. Through an open letter released today, Nuno Sampaio, Executive Director of the Casa da Arquitectura, proposes institutional collaboration protocols with Brazilian entities.
The debate intensified particularly after the publication of an open letter by FAUUSP, which highlighted its national and international recognition "for its archive and the knowledge produced through research conducted on it" and expressed regret over the decision of the architect and former professor to send all the material to Portugal. In today's letter, Sampaio acknowledges the work of the University of São Paulo and proposes future collaboration to facilitate access to the archive, among other initiatives, and to foster exchange between the two communities.
Read the full letter below:
"In recent years, I have come to know many institutions dedicated to research and/or the preservation of architectural archives in Brazil. I have witnessed their dedication to their missions and their commitment to society, whether public or private. The impact of their work would certainly be broader if these institutions had more funding and support, as we would all hope.
Processing archives is an ongoing, time-consuming, highly expensive, and often misunderstood task, making it difficult to fund anywhere in the world. This is a reality shared by Portuguese institutions as well.
Only 35% of an architect's work is actually built, which makes it even more urgent to ensure the preservation of these archives as the sole record of these professionals' years of work. Without preserving these collections, this entire heritage could not be studied, shared, or made known to the public. It would be irretrievably lost.
In this context, I would like to acknowledge and commend FAUUSP for its dedicated work in support of education and research in Brazil. Regarding the transfer of PMR's [sic] archive to the Casa da Arquitectura, I had the opportunity yesterday to speak with its director, Ana Lanna, proposing that the Casa da Arquitectura and FAUUSP establish collaborations through institutional partnership agreements. The goal is to promote access to this archive, among others, and to encourage exchange between the two communities.
This invitation is, of course, extended to all Brazilian entities dedicated to architecture that wish to develop knowledge and promote excellence in contemporary architecture.
Nuno Sampaio
Executive Director of the Casa da Arquitectura
Matosinhos, September 2020"
Via Instagram
This article was written by Victor Delaqua. The translation is powered by AI.
