Natural elements, people, and their culture—as assertions of architecture and social organization, alongside an incisive relationship with the river—shape an architecture with an Amazonian character. This research encompasses the study of the social and symbolic knowledge acquired over the years by the riverine communities of Marajó Island and its consequences on the materiality of local constructions, which have undergone changes over the last few decades.
Social pressure to modernize grows alongside the desire for social mobility and status. This culture of upward mobility has permeated the population of Marajó's towns, where masonry and concrete foundations are increasingly common, even if wood remains the choice of material from the floorboards up. This hybrid architecture, bridging the traditional and the modern, raises questions about globalization and its overwhelmingly homogenizing universal culture.
