Victor Delaqua holds a Master's degree from FAUUSP (São Paulo). He is an architect and urban planner from UFSC (Florianópolis) and studied at the Polytechnic University of Valencia. A contributor to ArchDaily since 2012, he is a Content and Community & Social Media editor. Professionally, he also works in exhibition and set design.
In its 7th edition, the Saint-Gobain Architecture-Sustainable Habitat Award seeks projects and buildings that offer comfort and innovative solutions while preserving the environment and promoting sustainability within the Brazilian construction industry.
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Five years after the Empena Viva project, Nitsche Arquitetos returns to artistically occupy the surroundings of the Minhocão. Through the Eclipse intervention, the team aims to illustrate the socioeconomic and temporal processes driven by São Paulo's urban dynamics using a simple gesture.
After at least five years of study, the time comes for Architecture and Urbanism students to complete their final graduation projects—often called TCC, TFG, or Graduation Projects. In choosing their topics, students highlight civil, urban, or theoretical projects that play a crucial role in sparking debates about the future of our cities, the built environment, urban infrastructure, mobility, and many other fundamental topics that shape how we inhabit space.
There are countless possibilities when designing the transition between public and private spaces. In residential architecture, the landscaping of the main facade plays a key role in this regard. By integrating different elements such as vegetation, paving, steps, and even artwork, it is possible to create a composition that not only highlights the architecture but is also generous to the public space.
As the end of the year approaches, it brings the opportunity to reflect on the standout architectural moments of 2023. With this in mind, we looked at the most liked photos on ArchDaily Brasil's Instagram.
The academic world has much to contribute to the field of architecture and urbanism. Its research and proposals foster inspiring visions, new materials, and concepts, sparking essential debates on how we perceive, occupy, and design the built environment. Across their entire spectrum, final graduation projects offer students an opportunity to put forward a final proposal before earning their degree, addressing diverse themes and touching upon urgent issues. Consequently, we host an annual call for submissions open to all Portuguese-speaking countries to present a panorama of outstanding projects that help us reflect on the past year and look to the future.
In a year marked by physical distancing, social media became even more crucial for connecting with others and staying informed. @archdailybr's Instagram expanded its reach, and in 2020, brought our audience not only Brazilian and Portuguese projects, but also the top articles and news from the architectural world.
When designing a building, one of the greatest challenges lies in integrating its base with the street level. To foster a more beneficial relationship with the city, bring "eyes on the street"—as Jane Jacobs put it—or even establish an active facade, architectural professionals employ various solutions.
Today is National Architect and Urban Planner Day in Brazil. Since 2018, Law 13,627/2018 has officially established this date on the Brazilian calendar. The day was chosen to honor architect Oscar Niemeyer on his birthday, and also commemorates the founding of the Council of Architecture and Urbanism (CAU).
Architecture carries a strong archetype, one in which its purpose seems larger than the discipline itself. Embellished by a poetic image, its practitioners embody the symbol of great inventors who conceive space and establish new ways of living in society. It is undoubtedly an alluring trade, and one that certainly shapes the daily life of any culture. Yet it is increasingly marked by illusion and disappointment in a market that seems to gradually distance itself from theory and close itself off in niches of its own creation. Under ever-growing competition that fails to yield a significant improvement in the quality of what is produced, working in architecture gradually translates into frustration and insecurity.
Once seen as a strictly utilitarian service area, the kitchen has increasingly integrated into daily family life, establishing itself as one of the most used spaces in a home. To seamlessly connect it with the rest of the residence, especially in small apartments, open-plan kitchens have become a favorite choice among clients.
"The image provided by Brutalism, an architecture of sensual extremes, is often an extraordinary and unfamiliar experience for the city explorer. There can be something aggressive and a bold vocabulary (...) in the expressive palette that displays the truth of its materials and a disdain for the frivolous." This is how Simon Phipps [1] describes the fascination that Brutalist works still hold for us today. Yet, what does it mean to think about this architecture in 2021?
Imagining and experiencing alternative ways to understand the relationship between the human body, space, and the ideas that connect it to the world was one of the central themes that Hundertwasser brought to light. The Austrian artist and architect, born in 1928, dedicated much of his work to environmental issues, expressing his perspective through the theory of the five skins: the epidermis, clothing, the home, social identity, and the world. Due to its universality, this concept retains a contemporary relevance.
With a foundational career as a professor at FAUUSP, serving for 15 years at the São Paulo Municipal Planning Department and as an urban planning consultant for municipal, state, and federal agencies, Flávio Villaça will be remembered for his professional integrity and as one of Brazil's most prominent urban theorists. His intellectual work shaped generations of architects and urban planners, fostering a critical perspective on Brazilian cities—their development, inequalities, segregation, and potential.
Far beyond mere repositories for books, libraries are spaces that, through the preservation of culture and knowledge, transform into places for gathering and exchange. Much like a book, they provide fertile ground for cultivating new ideas. To mark World Book Day, we present a selection of recently built libraries from around the world.
Methods of shading facades and preventing direct solar radiation from entering a building's interior have been present since ancient architecture. However, modern architecture popularized the use of the brise-soleil, one of the most widespread passive climate control devices, which shades spaces while allowing for cross-ventilation when necessary.
Flat slabs, pitched roofs, and straight-line designs are relatively recent developments in human history. Historically, curved roofs predominated in Indigenous architecture. Today, although they are not the most common choice, some firms are exploring how more organically designed roofs can better engage with their context and introduce functional benefits, influencing the project from the construction site to the ultimate comfort of its users.
Combining units and patterns to offer different ways of composing a space is the primary reason for choosing modular furniture. It adds value to interiors through spatial versatility while establishing a rhythm that can dictate various forms of occupancy and intervention within the same environment.
.jpg?1603311867 "© João Nitsche")
.jpg?1603312607 "© João Nitsche")
.jpg?1603311666 "© Pedro Mascaro")
.jpg?1603312244 "© João Nitsche")
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.jpg?1617308349 "Photo: Martin Abegglen from Bern, Switzerland, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons")
.jpg?1617308454 "Main facade of the KunstHausWien Museum by Friedensreich Hundertwasser (Vienna, Austria). Photo: Jules Verne Times Two / www.julesvernex2.com, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons")
