Use and appropriation as the everyday design of public space in the Bexiga Neighbourhood (São Paulo)
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Data
2020
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Edições Universitárias Lusófonas
Resumo
Bexiga is a historic and popular neighbourhood in São Paulo, situated
between the ‘old’ city centre and the well-known banking district of Avenida Paulista.
The public spaces in Bexiga thrive, despite disinvestment and lack of formal urban
design initiatives. While some authors attest an ongoing dereliction of duty by the
city administration towards this traditional neighbourhood, others celebrate the relative preservation of Bexiga’s architectural and cultural heritage. It is between neglect
and resistance as social spaces that Bexiga’s public spaces are shaped. This chapter
explores the collective nature of everyday use and its role not only as creator of the
neighbourhood’s public spaces but also as designer of these spaces, albeit in latent
form, through processes of use and appropriation. This rather informal character is
addressed from the perspective of historical-critical research on the collective
construction and evolution of Bexiga’s public spaces. Such informality provides juxtapositions of past and present, as well as of change and continuity. Led by an empirical
field research, this chapter analyses the construction of public space through use and
appropriation. Findings reveal that the informal character of public space implies
a more fluid spatiality and relies significantly on its temporality and its collective
character. The dynamics of everyday design is the result of a range of organised and
impromptu actions, in such a way that an organised event can endure unexpected
uses in the surrounding areas, embodying a fluid public space. There is an underlying
logic in the location of these spaces, close to housing and cultural hubs. It is the
persistent everyday repetition of ephemeral acts of use and appropriation that
creates and designs vibrant living public spaces in the neighbourhood. This creation
plays an important role in the cultural preservation of Bexiga, acting as a reinforcement of its collective origins and character.
Descrição
Série Cultura e Território
Palavras-chave
EDUCAÇÃO, EDUCATION, URBANISMO, URBANISM, SÃO PAULO (BRASIL), SÃO PAULO (BRAZIL), VIDA QUOTIDIANA, EVERYDAY LIFE, BAIRROS, NEIGHBOURHOOD, DESIGN, DESIGN, COCRIAÇÃO, COCREATION