GSD students research favelas of Sao Paulo
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Thirteen architectural students, led by Christian Werthmann, Associate Professor and Program Director Department of Landscape Architecture, are conducting research in the favelas of Sao Paulo, Brazil, as part of their studio option, GSD Cantinho do Céu Studio in São Paulo.
Cantinho do Céu (A Place in Heaven) is an informal city in the South of São Paulo; it houses 70,000 slum dwellers out of the 1.5 million in the metropolis. Cantinho do Céu is of strategic importance for São Paulo. It sits at the largest water reservoir of the metropolis which it pollutes heavily. Despite its poor infrastructure, sanitation and economic problems, Cantinho do Céu is a vibrant city. Its several kilometer-long waterfront is undeveloped and has high potential.
As finite masterplanning has failed in the area, the studio will pursue tactical operations unfolding over periods of time. Investigations will range from the watershed scale to the individual housing unit. A special focus will be placed on the deep integration of public space with alternative infrastructure propelling current favela upgrading practices to more contemporary principals of ecological urbanism.
Cantinho is a real project by the studio sponsor, the São Paulo Housing Agency, which is funding the site visit in the first week of March. The studio will be consulted by an international team of specialists ranging from environmental engineers to artists. The results of the studio will be published in a book, presented and exhibited at the Museu da Casa Brasileira in São Paulo.
Studio slide show : http://www.drclas.harvard.edu/brazil/gsd/studio2009_photos
[O Estado de Sao Paulo; March 4, 2009] For an English translation: http://www.drclas.harvard.edu/brazil/news/oesp_sp_escola_eng
[Folha (Sao Paulo, Brazil); March 5, 2009] For an English translation: http://www.drclas.harvard.edu/brazil/news/gsd_foreign_look
Image captions:
1. Christian Werthmann, Associate Professor and Program Director in Landscape Architecture, reviews a map of the Cantinho do Ceu site with his students before touring the area. Photo by Tomas Amorim.
2. GSD students on site. Photo by Tomas Amorim.
3. GSD students with (front row, kneeling from left), Maria Terez Diniz of the Sao Paulo Housing Secretariat and studio instructors Fernando de Mello Franco and Associate Professor Christian Werthmann at the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies during the students’ site visit in Sao Paulo. Photo by Tomas Degenaar.