And the selected proposals for the Portuguese Representation are...

NEXT→←PREV

Initially scheduled for 2020, the Venice Architecture Biennale has been postponed to 2021 running from 25 May to 21 November 2021. The Portuguese representation curated by DepA studio takes the form of two complementary formats - an exhibition at the Giustinian Lolin Palace and a cycle of debates, proposing to reflect on the processes characterised by conflict and confrontation, questioning the problem of living in its physical and social dimensions.

The Portuguese Official Representation for the 17th edition entitled In Conflict, presents the proposals for debates selected from the Open Call which ran from 14 May to 30 August 2020. The atelier from Porto testified together with a jury of which Fernanda Fragateiro, Jorge Carvalho, Anna Puigjaner, Moisés Puente, António Brito Guterres and Ana Jara took part, choosing six projects of different nationalities. With multidisciplinary approaches they will take place throughout the Biennale, in the geographical triangle of Lisbon, Oporto and Venice, as well as online. 

As an institutional partner of In Conflict, the Lisbon Architecture Triennale will host the two debate sessions that will take place in Lisbon, as part of the regular programme of the Sinel de Cordes Palace where it’s based. At the same time, it supported all the dissemination of this call for proposals for the cycle of debates that accompany the reflection on housing materialised in an exhibition. Since 2010, the Triennale has been invited to participate in the official representations, of which Homeland | News from Portugal' stands out (14th International Architecture Exhibition, La Biennale di Venezia, 2014) and with the exhibition No place like - 4 houses, 4 filmspresented at the University Ca' Foscari (12th International Architecture Exhibition of the Venice Biennale, 2010).

About In Conflict 

City and Territory, as collective constructions, are the primary arena of conflict, understood as the action of opposing forces translated as dissension. This condition, implicit to a pluralistic democratic space, shapes architectural production.In Conflict responds directly to the question How will we live together? – posed by Hashim Sarkis, curator of the Biennale Architettura 2021 – by learning from processes that question the issue of dwelling in its physical and social dimensions, and where conflict plays a crucial role. Public resilience and reflection transform these processes, which are still stirring, into valuable learning moments, to better understand architecture's transformative and political power.

Recalling the portrait drawn of Portugal in the film Non, ou a Vã Glória de Mandar by Manoel de Oliveira, In Conflict proposes a vision built upon a series of struggles that have yet to be overcome.

Caring Assemblies: positions on a space-to-come

by Bartlebooth - Antonio Giráldez López & Pablo Ibáñez Ferrera
Bartlebooth is a publishing and research platform that examines contemporary spatial practice, founded in 2013. The project has been awarded by the Iberoamerican Biennial of Architecture and Urbanism in 2019, the XIV Spanish Biennial of Architecture and Urbanism in 2018, and Arquia/Proxima 2018: Practicas Relevantes. In 2018 it was exhibited in the Spanish Pavilion at the 16th Venice Architecture Biennale and selected by the Future Architecture Platform. Its latest projects have been selected by the FAD Awards for Thought and Criticism in 2016 and 2019 and have been part of exhibitions such as Twelve Urban Fables in Matadero (Madrid, 2020) and Fiebre Photobook (Madrid, 2015), and fairs such as Libros Mutantes Madrid Art Book Fair (Madrid, 2016-2019). They have lectured at institutions such as the MAO Museum of Architecture and Design (Ljubljana), Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, MediaLAB-Prado (Madrid) and theLuis Seoane Foundation (A Coruna).

Antonio (b. 1990) is an architect (ETSAC, 2014), MSc in Advanced Architectural Design (ETSAM, 2015) and PhD (ETSAM, 2020). Pablo (b. 1992) is an architect (ETSAC, 2016) and MSc in Adavanced Architectural Design (ETSAM, 2018). They teach at SUR Escuela (CBA, Madrid) and the Master in Architectural Communication MaCA (UPM-UCM, Madrid).

Veneza Struggle within Conflict

by Francisco Calheiros & Maria Cristina Trabulo
Francisco Crisóstomo Calheiros (Porto, 1990) Portuguese architect living and working in Porto. Holds a Master degree (2014) in Architecture at the University of Porto and the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, with the dissertation Delirious D.F. (Mexico City): Chaos narratives through urban praxis. Did an internship during 2012 with Fernando Romero FR-EE (Mexico City) and worked with the collective murmuro (2015-2017) and with the collective depA (2017-2018), before beginning his individual practice in 2019. Active member of MTA (Architecture Workers Movement) since its formation in 2019. 03.11.2020 Pavilhão de Portugal Curadoria depA architects

Maria Cristina Vieira dos Santos de Almeida Trabulo (Porto, 1989) Portuguese artist and researcher living and working in Porto. Maria’s practice predominantly derives from the activist and interventional potential of the work of art and the artist in society, in order to tackle fracturing issues of the sociopolitical past and present of communities and places. Her work is marked by an interdisciplinary approach in the universe of art, science, and technology. Over the course of her practice, Maria has developed several projects in collaboration with local communities, and with practitioners from other scientific and artistic fields. She graduated in Fine Arts at the University of Porto and the Iceland Academy of the Arts, and holds a MA degree in Art&Science from the Universität für angewandte Kunst Wien. Founding member of the artist-run spaces Expedição (2013-2015) and InSpiteOf (2018-2020) in Porto. Maria has sustained an active artistic practice since 2012, with several solo and group exhibitions in Portugal and abroad. Her work has been awarded with relevant international prizes and been granted support from important institutions. Maria regularly contributes to publications and seminars, and participates in artist residencies.

Porto Public Housing - No Silver Bullet

by Samuel Gonçalves
Samuel Gonçalves (Arouca, 1988) graduated in Architecture from the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Porto in 2013. He worked for a year at the Chilean studio Elemental, directed by Alejandro Aravena. In 2015, he founded his own practice, Summary, at UPTEC (Science and Technology Park of the University of Porto). Summary is the company responsible for the design of the GOMOS building system, for which it was selected as a finalist for the National Creative Industries Award in that same year. He participated in the main exhibition at the Biennale Architettura 2016 - La Biennale di Venezia (“Reporting from the Front”), with the original installation “Infrastructure- Structure-Architecture”. In 2017, SUMMARY received the RED DOT award in the “Habitat” category and was also nominated as a finalist in the YAP contest, promoted by the Italian museum MAXXI in partnership with MoMA (Museum of Modern Art, USA). In 2018, Samuel was selected by the 40 under 40 - European Design Award, to integrate the list containing the 40 most promising emerging architects and designers in Europe, selected by the European Centre for Architecture, Art, Design and Urban Studies. During the academic year of 2017/2018, Samuel was invited to conduct a research project by developing a series of workshops entitled “Scaffolding Project” in the Department of the Interior Design of the Academy of Fine Arts, in Kraków. As of 2018, SUMMARY has been cooperating with the global educational and academic community by developing a virtual and immaterial exhibition on prefabricated architecture, exposing an investigation that guided its activity throughout the years, entitled “The Reasons Offsite”. This exhibition has been shown in several venues - from Boston, USA (Society of Boston Architects), to Edinburgh, Scotland (Edinburgh College of Art), Budapest, Hungary (as part of the Contemporary Arts Festival) and Weimar, Germany, this last presentation as part of the official program of the Bauhaus Centenary

Lisboa Instant City: emergency housing, refugee camps, forced mobility in a pandemic world 

by Carlos Machado e Moura, Bernardo Amaral
Carlos Machado Architect (FAUP, 2006), postgraduate in Architectural Heritage (CEAPA-FAUP, 2013), PhD candidate (PDA-FAUP/FCT, 2015) and integrated researcher at the University of Porto (CEAU-FAUP). He collaborated with Italian public agency Urban S.p.A. (2007-09), lectured at the University of Florence (2009/10) and integrated research projects on urban regeneration (DISTRICT/PICTURE, 2006-07; CREATE, 2013-14). He also practises as an architect with MAVAA, being co-author of the Primary and Nursery School of Sant’Albino (Montepulciano, Italy, 2010-16), published in Casabella and selected for the Bauwelt Award and PremisFAD. Author of the books Casas Quinhentistas de Castelo Branco (CMCB/Argumentum, 2008) and Building Views (Circo de Ideias, 2017), he was a member of J–A Jornal Arquitectos’ editorial team (2016-19). He co-organised several initiatives about Drawing (2016-18) and was assistant curator of Open House Porto 2016 and the exhibition Physics of Portuguese Heritage (DGPC, 2019). He currently collaborates with panoramah!® and is member of COST Action 18126 “Writing urban places” (2019/23) and researcher of the project “(EU)ROPA –Rise of Portuguese Architecture” (CES-UC, 2018/21).

Bernardo Amaral, Architect graduated from the University of Porto (FAUP) in 2005. From 2003 to 2010 he has collaborated in diverse architecture offices in Porto, Paris and Macao. Based in Porto since 2008, Bernardo has been responsible for several refurbishments of 19th-century townhouses in the city’s historic centre, such as Casa do Pinheiro, which received an honourable mention of João de Almada prize in 2012. Among other projects, the refurbishment of a working-class housing block in São Vitor (2015) has been an object of academic studies and published in specialised books or journals. Parallel to the architecture practice (BAAU), Bernardo was invited tutor in several workshops and lectures, questioning the production relationship between design and building process, as well as the role of the architectural practice in social contexts. In 2015 Bernardo enrolled in a PhD Architecture Program in the University of Coimbra (DARQ-FCTUC) and has been developing a research thesis on the production relationships and working methodologies of current architecture practices, that reclaim a social and political engagement.

Debating Lisbon’s Future Housing

by Gennaro Giacalone, João Romão, Margarida Leão
Gennaro Giacalone (1993) Master degree in Architecture at Politecnico di Milano in 2018, wrote a thesis on turistification’s social and architectural impacts in Lisbon, collaborating with Roberta Pellè. Wrote the paper Possible strategies to break the bond between urban requalification and gentrification in collaboration with Roberta Pellè and Luís Mendes. Currently works with HAJE Arquitectos in Lisbon.

João Romão (1993) Master degree in Architecture at FAUL in 2020, completed the first year of master’s degrees at FAU University of São Paulo. Wrote a thesis on flexible housing and real estate market. In 2014 João was co-founder of Atelier Angular. Between 2017-2019 worked in collaboration with Carlos Aragão and João Pombeiro. In 2019 developed the workshop Protest Project, in collaboration with Hugo Jammes.

Margarida Leão (1990) Master degree in Architecture at FAUL in 2015, completed the first year of master’s degrees at FADU University of Buenos Aires. Wrote a thesis about architecture as an instrument of political affirmation. She started her professional practice in 2016 as a collaborator in PLCO Arquitectos and Ventura Trindade Arquitectos. During the last years, worked in Switzerland with Stefan Wülser, Nicolaj Bechtel and Didier Balissat.

Lines of Violence

by Patrícia Robalo 
Architect by the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Lisbon. Founded MUTA after working for other studios in Lisbon and for De Blacam and Meagher Architects in Dublin .In the last few years, based on the doctoral research she develops at the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Porto on contemporary construction of the metropolitan area of Lisbon, she has written articles, participated as a speaker in debates, round tables, conferences and has created or integrated projects for the dissemination and debate of architectural and urban culture. Namely: Another Lisbon whose final program was an associated project of the Lisbon Architecture Triennale 2016 and supported by ISCTE’s DIN MIA’CET-IUL; Inside the Metropolitan Area of Porto in co-authorship with Sara Sucena and with support from OASRRN and participating municipalities; Feminist Perspectives on Space Practices? organised with Mulheres na Arquitectura; and curated Open House Lisboa 2019.

The detail calendar of the debate series will be announced on December 2020.