Instrumento, processo, estratégia: Caldas do Moledo como laboratório metodológico da metamorfose do Lugar e do Tempo nas paisagens arquitectónicas do Douro

Abstract

The present work thrives from the desire to participate in the revision of contemporary methods of seeing, thinking and intervening in 'architectural landscapes'. Through the proposal of an 'Instrument', 'Process' and 'Strategy' it is hoped to contribute to the construction of current urban realities, having Douro and Caldas do Moledo as a methodological laboratory of these premises. Caldas do Moledo, known as the entrance gate to the heart of the Douro thanks to its strategic position on the right bank of the river, has always been of great importance in the cultural exchange of this region. In spite of the marked predominance of the vineyard's monoculture, the case study presents pluralities and diversities along its extent, constituting an urban set greatly due to the action of one of the most outstanding personalities of the Douro, 'Ferreirinha'. New centralities and systems emerge in the region, and places like Caldas do Moledo, once a feature in the landscape, now a memory of other times, are suspended in time. The construction of a strategy for Caldas do Moledo seeks to understand and articulate the possibilities of recovering a place full of character, history and heritage values that, although constrainded by the abandonment and the passage of time, holds potentialities within the contemporary dynamics, both locally and regionally. It will be presented a vision, not only territorial and architectural, but also social, economic and cultural, which does not identify with the relations and superficial images of the Douro's tourism, seeking, instead, to value different qualities and atmospheres, or the Genius Loci, of this and other places. Considering the transformation processes that the Douro region faces and through a work method based on the physical and formal analysis of the different dynamics, an attempt will be made to highlight the fundamental principles of action that arise from the perception of the values and identities of this territory. Intervening in a place like Caldas do Moledo requires a reflection on the various identities, systems and dynamics present in this territory, be they historical, architectural, urban, economic, cultural or social. It is essential to undersand to carefully preserve and transform the material and immaterial heritage of the Douro Region, focused here in Caldas do Moledo, as much as it is imperative to reconstruct a discourse that joins tradition and progress, truly representative of a 'Cultural, Evolving and Living Landscape '.