VERDANT RUINS – A PERSPECTIVE FOR PRESERVING THE LANDSCAPE OF RUINS OF PRAINHA BRANCA, GUARUJÁ-SP

THESIS

Ruins are intertwined with their surroundings, appearing as landscapes. Nature typically appropriates ruins by creating a symbiosis that adds aesthetic value to the historical monuments. When situated in a natural setting, ruins also add aesthetic value to the environment. Since Romanticism, there has been an interest in the relationship between ruin and nature. In the field of historical heritage site conservation studies there is a common practice of removing vegetation, perceived as damaging to the monument. But there are circumstances where the consolidation of ruins may include part of the ruderal vegetation by maintaining plant species that do not pose risk of structural damage or material decomposition, or that are already in a deep relationship with the ruins, forming part of it. Furthermore, vegetation can serve as a preservation tool by offering a potential protective function, complementing its role in creating a picturesque image and singular atmosphere, as occurs in the so-called “verdant ruins”. The roots of this approach can not only be found in Italy but also to its practiced in England. In Brazil, the interventions relate to the singularities of each site and debates as well as specific actions indicate an interest in landscapes featuring verdant ruins, even though the concept has not been explicitly adopted. In the ruins landscape at Prainha Branca, in Guarujá, Sao Paulo, its condition of vegetation symbiosis is not balanced however, has potential to a verdant preservation approach. Therefore, its conservation must encompass natural elements and the local community through a thoughtful landscape project that aims maintaining the experience of ruins surrounded by nature.

Person

• Andrea Queiroz da Silva Fonseca Rego
• Angela Rosch Rodrigues
• Cláudia Carvalho Leme Nóbrega
• Fabiola do Valle Zonno [contributor]
• Gustavo Rocha-Peixoto
• Laís Hanson Alberto Lima [author]
• Nivaldo Vieira

Course

• Doctor of Architecture PROARQ

ResearchLine

• Theory and Teaching of Architecture