Articles by Susanna Moreira

While women in architecture already face more obstacles than men in their careers, as proven by studies and research from across the globe, the disparities become even more obvious when it comes to partnerships involving both genders. In the history of the profession, there are many examples of office partnerships or collaborations that reveal the discrepancies in terms of recognition achieved by the work, reflected in awards, honors, citations, and salaries.

Because of the decrease in the availability of land area and the ever-increasing price per square meter, cities often tend to grow vertically. When we picture large metropolitan areas, we almost always imagine high-rise buildings, and the recognizable skyline becomes an icon that immediately evokes the places in which they are located.

With the increase of urban density and the decrease in the availability of land, the verticalization phenomenon has intensified in cities all over the world. Similar to the vertical growth of buildings — which is often a divisive issue for architects and urban planners — many initiatives have sought in the vertical dimension a possibility to foster the use of vegetation in urban areas. Vertical gardens, farms and forests, rooftop vegetable gardens, and elevated structures for urban agriculture are some of the many possibilities of verticalization in plant cultivation, each with its unique characteristics and specific impacts on the city and its inhabitants.

We know that colors can influence our sensations and cause different perceptions of a space, which confirms the benefits of designing a consistent color palette and its importance in architectural projects. The impact of color on a space and on the people who use it becomes even more perceptible when the whole environment is covered with just one color. In these cases, the selected shade can be applied to countless architectural elements. Floors, ceilings, walls, furniture, or even pipes and electrical conduits can have a specific hue to match the monochromatic environment.

We know that colors can influence our sensations and cause different perceptions of a space, which confirms the benefits of designing a consistent color palette and its importance in architectural projects. The impact of color on a space and on the people who use it becomes even more perceptible when the whole environment is covered with just one color. In these cases, the selected shade can be applied to countless architectural elements. Floors, ceilings, walls, furniture, or even pipes and electrical conduits can have a specific hue to match the monochromatic environment.

The Corviale housing complex, located in the south-western periphery of Rome, was designed in the 1970s as a solution to the growing number of dormitory districts in the Roman suburbs, caused by the significant population increase between the 1950s and 1970s – when the population grew from approximately 1.6 million to 2.7 million inhabitants – followed by suburban sprawl.

“There seems to be a public image of any given city which is the overlap of many individual images,” American urban planner Kevin Lynch once said. “Or perhaps there is a series of public images, each held by some significant number of citizens,” he added.

The state of Florida, in the United States, is bordered to the south, east, and west by the Atlantic Ocean, with a coastline of over two thousand kilometers in length, and is characterized by extensive areas of lakes, rivers, and ponds. Land booms during the early and mid-20th century resulted in the development of new communities and the expansion of low-density suburbia across many parts of the state, which frequently incorporated the abundant water resources, sometimes failing in their efforts.

Many architects tend to prefer using materials and architectural elements in their natural or raw state. It is common to remove ceilings and finishings, especially in renovation projects, to expose a building’s structure. This process of reclaiming the natural materials of construction – without incorporating elements to cover the framework, pipes, tubes, and cables – transforms these spaces into places that have nothing to hide.

Whether as a retrospective, a collection of contemporary works, or a compilation of prospects for the future – and all the other possibilities in between -, architecture and urban planning exhibitions have played an important role in shaping the future of cities over the decades. These events are often open to the public, reaching many people who don’t necessarily have a background in the field, thus providing great environments to explore a collective view of the future of architecture and cities.