Ninth International Conference on The Constructed Environment

Abstract

Given the importance of housing to promote urban dynamics in central areas, it is believed that the re-use of existing unoccupied structures is conducive to the revitalization of historic centers. The diffusion of the private house, isolated, single-family and decentralized of the housing action, together with the very low investments in infrastructure, constitute the history of Brazilian popular housing. The homogenization of space, with inflexible projects, frequently presented in housing programs in Brazil, suggests that all individuals have the same needs. In an economically globalized world, architectural standardization exerts an authoritarian function on users and their authenticity, and has become the new object of desire. However, the laws and norms applied today in the recovery of historical spaces do not consider the exceptionality of the identity characteristics of the old constructions. This article proposes the challenge of thinking about the reoccupation of the preexisting patrimony of Brazilian historical centers, in order to be recognized as modern and current. The hypothesis assumed here goes beyond historicist rigidity that inhibits the “recontextualization of architecture”, with the restoration of patrimony and the implementation of architectural programs of a housing or mixed nature. However, it is difficult to establish the concept of contemporary housing, paying respect to the identity of the building, taking advantage of its morphological patterns in the project. In this context, flexibility and adaptability are essential characteristics that will give the resident the ability to express himself and, above all, to understand spaces with diversified ambiences.