Article written by Elisa Silva for the zero edition of the printed journal forA on the Urban, which examines the open, unfinished, multi-scaled, interconnected, complex and wild nature of urban manifestations, challenges and situations through an expanded notion of architecture. Sponsored by Die Angewandte (University of Applied Arts Vienna), and conceptualized and produced by the Institute of Architecture (IoA).
Excerpt from the text
“Barrios are an urban phenomenon that parallels the development of modern architecture in Latin America, which witnessed its peak in cities like Caracas, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Mexico City and Buenos Aires during the 1950s and 1960s. At the same time, and even sooner, barrios were dotting the undeveloped peripheries and environmentally vulnerable landscapes of these very same cities. Each of the houses in the barrios was built by a construction worker who migrated from the countryside to help build the modern city.”