GLOBAL SPACES: The International Centre for the Arts
It is important that architects value the concept of time as a part of the language of the built form. It is important to note that spaces have the quality of becoming a live form, in a sense that spaces, like living things, have an inherent life span. Spaces mature and age just like the entities that inhabit it. With that said, the life span of the space is only able to carry on as long as it serves its function. When the day comes that it doesn’t, it is only reduced to the memory of what it once was. However, architects have the power to regenerate this memory and make it come to life again, and maybe even bigger and better than before. This week’s case study is about the International Centre for the Arts, and how effectively it is able to transcend an old architectural memory.
The International Centre for the Arts, located in Guimaraes, Portugal, was designed by the design firm Pitagoras Arquitectos and was completed in 2012. It is distinct for its brass walls with extending volumes that juts out from the existing built forms of an old market square. This market square was once a key central space in the city with the various commercial businesses it once had. The design team of Pitagoras Arquitectos wanted to reclaim this area and regenerate a new narrative for the space. They wanted to redefine the market square into a new central space for the city that breeds multi-cuturality through the arts and social activities.
The result is the creation of an art museum dedicated to permanently exhibit the works of Guimaraes’s local artist, Jose de Guimaraes. The Centre also has areas for temporary exhibits, and a space allocated for miscellaneous activities such as shows and performances.
However, what qualifies this museum as a hub of arts and culture is the allocation of spaces for people to create. Two major programs of this building are also the “creative labs,” which provides a space for businesses to set up activities related to the creative industries, and a space for workshops that artists can use while they are currently working on projects. Living up to the old narrative of the market square, The International Centre for the Arts has definitely redefined the means of cultural exchange.
For the actual square itself, the architects revamped the space by paving it with concrete slabs and adding a large reception area to hold different types of events. This addition regenerates the old narrative of the market square by creating a new hub for social interaction.
In addition to the renovation of the existing parts, the new buildings carry on a new architectural dialogue. The space plays with the idea of contrasting surfaces and chromatic schemes. It was also very important to the architects that the interior space creates a dialogue with the exterior.
The International Centre for the Arts definitely exemplifies how the past can be translated into the present. By keeping the architectural memory intact, it is possible to regenerate an old space into something different and new, yet the same and familiar.