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O Espigão & Suas Janelas - Possibilidades No Vazio
Escola da Cidade
Architecture & Landscape
BA Architecture & Urbanism Thesis

2016

Marina Grinover

My Final Graduation Thesis 'O Espigão e suas janelas - Possibilidades no Vazio' (The Spike and its Windows - Possibilities in the Void) was a continuity of an Academic Research, that began in 2013, and which discussed the processes of cities's identity and image formation through photographic narratives, passing through issues such as the landscape, spatial visual elements and (collective) memory.

When I begun the final thesis project, it came naturally to me the idea of continuing to delve into these themes and to also be able to study other subjects that emerged in the course of my first research, such as walking, the body, its time and its speed. The research is constituted by 1. a brief overview on the window element in the history of architecture; 2. about the term landscape and 3. a mapping of the views that open to the horizon - to the remnants of the natural landscape of the city of São Paulo (such as Serra da Cantareira), - which came up through walking and the direct contact between the body and the city. Only the body is able, through space and at its own pace, to perceive the nuances and different layers of a city as multiple as São Paulo. Through the body's perspective, the views can be interpreted as large and important voids in the city, which must be preserved in order to give vent to the sight and therefore, able to be completed subjectively. Also, they guide the user and provide their location in the city.

I made photographic records and written reports of my crossings through Espigão (the highest elevation in the city of São Paulo), cataloged and mapped the places I found and, finally, I analyzed them through their specificities and potentialities in order to, later on, create a visual system, indicating their presence throughout this axis and a "guide for interventions" that would occupy the spaces, in order to keep these windows-views present. The result of the work is a book in which I present the theoretical research, the collected and analyzed material, and the project.

note: the publication was selected for the 11th São Paulo Architecture Biennial's open call Imaginário da Cidade (City's Imaginary), to participate in the Biennial's exhibition at the Mário de Andrade Library and integrate the permanent collection of the institution. Also, the illustration beside was selected for the open call Drawings at the Archdaily website, in 2018.