123 - The Urban Legacy of Malagueira and Álvaro Siza

The architecture of Álvaro Siza has been recognized since his first works in the region of Porto, at the beginning of the career. They evidence a sense of place and a strong commitment to the promotion of the cultural and social way of living (Frampton, 1985). The international style was giving a hand to a more regional approach, linked to the inhabitant’s character and feeling, and his architecture is a special example to the genius loci concept (Norberg-Schulz, 1979). The first Mies van der Rohe prize for the Vila do Conde bank is a mark of the early years, but his lecture of cities was not so explored in urban literature.

In fact, his works are internationally understood as an architecture that fits exactly in what the places require, given the sense that are already there for a long time (Siza, 2000). For example, the decision for the Contemporary Art Centre position in Santiago de Compostela (1993) made comprehensive his urban relations. The landscape is not an empty dashboard, there is history, the geographies, the built environment and all the ingredients of sites are tools to improve the projects for citizens (Molteni, 1997). Through his sketches and research drawings, it is possible to reveal the eyes and hands studying the places where he is called to work, making them also his own cities (Siza, 2001).

The urban theories had shown that there are different dimensions in city planning and design, connected to the various morphological, technical and social approaches (Sanchez, 2008). But of course the cities need them all together and Architects are known as professionals who can make that synthesis. After the Portuguese revolution, Siza was called to plan and design a new neighborhood in Évora, and certainly this experience contribute to his methods and approach (Rodrigues, 1992), especially at urban scale. The goal of this research is to explain the legacy of Malagueira and Álvaro Siza for urban theory.

The projects of Siza were mostly studied when focused on architecture, but it is also important to explore his contribution to plans and operational instruments in a larger scale. Being always attentive to the sites, it is relevant to scope the urban dimension and parameters of his works. Operating in diverse geographies, with unequal developments and ordinances, how his design defines the cultural and social variables associated to other case studies. Finally, since drawing is a good way to reveal the ideas of Álvaro Siza, it is possible to find the boundaries of his vision for regional planning.