Potencialidades da Escala 1:1. Dispositivos de Experimentação e Divulgação em Arquitetura

Abstract

The difficulties and the limitations that architecture presents regarding its disclosure, in exhibition format, allied to an increased interest by Expos, Festivals and Biennials of Architecture -that bring closer the public space, the city, and the people- served as a motto for the study of experimentation devices and disclosure in architecture. The present dissertation seeks to present alternative paths, in constant exploration, to extrapolate the traditional values of architecture disclosure, based on a sensory dialogue which produces knowledge. It proposes a reflection on the importance of contact with materials, with 1:1 scale, simultaneously boosting research and the experimentation of new ideas through fullscale construction, providing an undeniable "experimental laboratory" -central theme for the present study about teaching architecture. With the goal of studying experiences made on the field of spatial practices and the potential freedom provided by full-scale construction, it is intended to clarify the evolution of full-scale devices, as container and content; to show the development of ephemeral practices in architecture, mentioning the importance they had for the architectural progress up to current times; explore the relationship between ephemeral architecture and art, realizing how it can be seen as a reflection about time, not by its durability, but by its social and cultural impact; to understand the viability of these practices, in the project and exhibits, highlighting the importance of emotional involvement between visitor and the architectural object. Through the contribute of several architects -interviewed within the scope of this dissertation- it was possible to collect a significant sample of testimonies, which reveal the perspectives and experiences of the architects, complementing the bibliographic review of the present research. The testimonies corroborate the relevance of 1:1 scale devices, actively contributing for architectural debate and critique. Transversely, through monitoring the project Petites Folies: Other Landscapes over Douro, it was possible to explore interdisciplinary inherent to the methodological interactions between architecture and design; collective design techniques and do-it-yourself construction; public space appropriation; new programmatic approaches; to learn through exploring new materials, dynamics, forms, geometries among other alternative formats, and also, the public's reception to those installations.