Tabula Scripta. Proposta de intervenção para preexistência em Arcos de Valdevez

Abstract

This dissertation adresses the role of the pre-existing in the development of architectural design, based on the premise that the act of creation is built upon the critical recognition of its predecessors. In opposition to the paradigm of the tabula rasa, which tends to exclude pre-existence in favour of an autonomous design approach, the concept of tabula scripta, is proposed as a strategy of reading the existing ensuring continuity and adaptation to contemporary demands. In order to deepen the research, a design proposal was developed for pre-existing structures located at the edge of the Serra da Peneda, in Arcos de Valdevez. The case study comprises a site with granite masonry structures, consisting of a residential and an agricultural building set whitin a landscape with a strong natural character. The territorial analisys reveals dynamics associated with the decline of the social and economic structures. In this sense, the study discusses how development strategies, in the face of abandonment and obsolescence, may contribute to updating its identity. This framework supports the proposal of a shared housing programme as a strategy for local revitalisation. In parallel, the first phase of Álvaro Siza Vieira's intervention at the home of Alcino and Zilda Cardoso (1971-1973; Moledo do Minho, Portugal) is analysed, with a focus on its design strategy, for its contribution to the central premise of this dissertation. The theoretical framework is structured around three main bibliographic axes: architectural theory and intervention; the rural context; and contemporary housing. On a practical level, drawing and model-making operate as tools for understanding the site, as well as methods for exploring imagined possibilities.