Steel and Light in the Reinhabit of Ruins with a Scenographic Character

Abstract

In Popular Portuguese Architecture, there are a large number of buildings that we should have as a reference and whose essence should be analyzed during the rehabilitation or development of the project, in order to create a connection to the place and to keep their identity. These places, full of history and memories, give us the idea of scenarios which can be traversed and which present us with light and the surrounding nature in each opening. The introduction of the New involves its characterization in modern architecture as being the one that should be able to establish a connection to the past without destroying it and without renouncing to its means of expression. This way, these concepts reflect the importance of connecting in the same urban mesh, as a living organism, two periods in which one does not override the other, but that, in turn, add value to each other. In popular architecture, the dwelling space is adapted by Man through his way of living and experiencing the place and it can be compared to the ‘Living Machine’ of Le Corbusier. Both had to respond to the psychological, functional and spiritual needs of the people, through the building simplicity and the study of light entry in the spaces. The illumination of the spaces was not designed to the meet human needs not even those for domestic purposes. Inhabiting immediately assumes the relationship with the surroundings and the orientation of the sun, and, in this sense, illumination is one of the most important elements in architecture. The Light is the “soul” of architecture, as it gives life, movement and different dimensions and depths to it by using natural illumination during the day and artificial at night. The illumination should be part of the conceptual process of the project, as the structural part is and of everything, that is part of an architectural project and of its peculiarities.