+ 18

{CURA} continues its series of ideas competitions on themes aligned with current architectural, urban, and social discussions, operating under the premise that architecture is a profession rooted in action.

This time, the {CURA} Award focuses on the scale of everyday life. Consequently, the theme of this ideas competition is Apartment Renovation.

Frequently used in wet areas, such as bathrooms and kitchens, as well as outdoor spaces like plazas and sidewalks, cement tiles are increasingly being incorporated into other rooms in interior design projects. This is due not only to their beauty, but also to their ability to adapt to the specific demands of different uses, along with practical benefits like easy cleaning.

+ 11

+ 5

+ 9

+ 9

+ 3

Part of the archive of the architect Hans Broos has been cataloged, treated, and digitized, and is now available for online and in-person consultation at the Ingo Hering Memory Center of the Hermann Hering Foundation.

+ 37

Although the urban fabric of Buenos Aires is characterized by a heterogeneous and constantly changing morphological condition, within the range of low-density housing, it is possible to detect certain recurring typologies that emerged from the interplay of successive historical variables—such as block subdivision strategies, urban regulations and their subsequent updates, or the building traditions of those who built the city. One of these identifiable typologies is the PH, whose name derives from *Propiedad Horizontal* (Horizontal Property), a regulation that allowed the development of individual homes within a single plot.

Considered one of the world's oldest construction techniques, structural masonry in Brazil was first used during the colonial period with stone, adobe, and rammed earth. Since then, the method has evolved, finding renewed viability through contemporary materials such as modular concrete blocks or load-bearing ceramic blocks. 

In this construction method, where the structure and enclosure are built simultaneously, columns and beams are unnecessary. Consequently, the walls serve a dual purpose: they define the spaces while functioning as the load-bearing structure of the building.

+ 16

Architect and urban planner Maria Elisa Baptista is the new President of the National Board of the IAB. She succeeds Nivaldo Andrade, whose term ended on September 26 of this year. In nearly a century of existence, this is the first time a woman has held the position.

The leadership team also includes Rafael Pavan dos Passos (National Vice President, IAB-RS), Cláudio Listher Marques Bahia (Secretary General, IAB-MG), Rosilene Guedes Souza (Administrative-Financial Director, IAB-MG), Luiz Eduardo Sarmento Araújo (Cultural Director, IAB-DF), Fernando Túlio Salva Rocha Franco (Extraordinary Vice President of Institutional Relations, IAB-SP), and Luiza Rego Dias Coelho (Extraordinary Vice President of Affirmative Action, IAB-DF).

The first monument to the victims of the novel coronavirus in Brazil has been inaugurated. Named In-finito, the memorial was installed at the Penitência Cemetery and Crematorium, in Rio de Janeiro's port area, designed by architect Crisa Santos, of the collective of the same name.

The initiative came from the architect herself, who developed the project with the goal of donating it to public and private cemeteries, as well as municipalities, companies, or other institutions wishing to pay tribute to Covid-19 victims anywhere in the country.

The Industrial Workers' Retirement and Pension Institute (IAPI) commissioned the prominent Rio de Janeiro architect Paulo Antunes Ribeiro, national president of the Institute of Architects of Brazil (IAB) in the 1950s, to design this project in the industrial neighborhood of Mooca, an area already highly consolidated by the 1940s. Occupying a large urban void, the housing complex consists of seventeen blocks arranged to follow a rational layout, though without the same geometric rigor that Attilio Corrêa Lima had adopted at Várzea do Carmo. Within Mooca's fragmented urban fabric, Ribeiro introduced a modern urban design that eliminated traditional subdivision lots, creating a large public space where the blocks are integrated into green areas.

+ 2

In August 2019, Eternit presented its photovoltaic solar tile at Intersolar South America. This first-of-its-kind product in the country has just received Inmetro certification for production. The model had already been approved by the institute, and with this certification, the first concrete tile capable of generating energy—developed in Brazil—can now be marketed.

Those who install these tiles on their homes will be able to capture sunlight to produce electricity—without the need for additional panels. This technology became globally known through Tesla's solar tiles.

{CURA} believes that education, debate, and professional practice must go hand in hand.

+ 10

+ 27

+ 28

+ 16