Showing posts with label first week. Show all posts
Showing posts with label first week. Show all posts
Friday, April 10, 2009
Eagerly taking risks
When visiting the favelas of Sao Paulo perspectives are changing. Influence of the media play a big role in this world of slums, they actually control the first expectations of the visitor. But what they actually show is just a small piece of the whole. The problems, poverty and crime rates of these irregular communities are always addressed and shown to the outside world. Entering a favela is risky business. The truth is clouded in a way, or at least not shown as a whole. The only time this image of favela appeared was at the visit of a part of Paraisopolis (07-04-200, day 2 of the workshop program), I would like to address this as the ‘Phase One’ and actually call it slum. This phase is characterised by the haste of the invasion of a certain area. Houses are constructed of wooden walls that can barely hold their own weight and sheets of corrugated material as a roof. The word temporary is written all over it, in three to six months these ‘Phase One’ parts of favelas are transforming slowly in a different kind of area. When the inhabitants decide to stay and convert their hut into a house that has a better resistance and a better adaption concerning the surrounding area. This I will call ‘Phase Two’, an intermediate state in the evolvement of the favela where provisionally is tried to maintain a water network and sometimes a sewer system. But ‘Phase Three’ is were it gets interesting. The municipality and private companies or the community itself start to interfere and create opportunities were there first were problems. For their own benefits or not, this means an upgrading of the neighbourhood, and here a new kind of angle of looking at these neighbourhoods is created. A new truth you might say. Such interventions are for example to be seen in Pantanal (07-04-2009, day 2 of the workshop program) where the community has created an arts and crafts centre for entertainment and education of new generations. When visiting a ‘Phase Three’ favela these kinds of projects are shown and create a different perspective on the area. It seems that poverty and crime do not exist here; people are proud of what they have and are eagerly to show this (also luxury goods as washing machines and televisions are present). This is on the one hand very logical, when someone is visiting Amsterdam you would like to show him or her the richness of the city, the beautiful sights and the pieces you are proud of (For example the city centre with its canals, and not the ‘Bijlmer’ with his metro). This also happened in Cantinho do Ceu (06-04-2009, day 1 of the workshop program) were big houses and relatively good infrastructure was shown (lots of 5m x 25m, and dwellings of three stories high!). On the other hand this is showing a kind of truth that is also not complete. A dilemma for the outsider is created and the risk of taking a wrong point of view is rising. Are these people really happy or living in fear for any particular reason? During the lectures and discussion at SEHAB (09-04-2009, day 4 of the workshop program) it became clear that the fear of being removed from your house is a fear that should not exist. SEHAB is trying to avoid houses to be demolished and inhabitants of invaded areas are offered a new dwelling or a compensating amount of money if their house is on the list to be demolished. Which is considered to be strange because of the illegal background of the settlement and the risk that people apparently are willing to take when living in these kinds of areas. It seems that SEHAB is not fighting the problem this way but stimulating it in some strange way. But at least they are trying and not hiding behind an electric fence, like people who live in communities like Alphaville (08-04-2009, day 3 of the workshop program). It is strange to see that these people seem so afraid that they are willing to give up a part of their privacy for more security. But what is live without a little bit of risk?
VIEWING THE CITY SÁO PAULO
Day 1 [6th of April]
View 06-04-2009 First Week CSI Sao Paulo in a larger map
Cantinho do ceu
First day with the group we went to a Project where SEHAB was working on the slum Cantinho de Ceu this was a slum what was directly beside a lake off the region off Sao Paulo therefore it is very strange there are slums and not more luxury's housing. A hypnotise is that 25 years ago the place was far away from the city with a bad infrastructure. Knowing this is a Good location the question is how long the Slum is staying here and is replace with luxury's housing, therefore maybe it is not really a good thing there is a new infrastructure thru where the Housing rates are going up.
Interesting thing also is the way the are trying to make a park at the border off the lake, this way there is a buffer between the lake and the houses so when the water is higher the housing will not be floated, off course this is a good thing but people how where living there are now moved away hopefully in the same favela. Making a way to witstand this floats are also a good alternative example good be a embankment or housing on columns or higher ground.
TECHNICAL ANGLE
Housing block off 25x5 metre
Building typology :
1á2 building stories hight
Concrete columns with brick fillings
some housing is plastered and than also painted
windows and fencing are commen
electricity is present
water, sewerage is present or being build
Day 2 [7th of April]
View 07-04-2009 First week CSI Sao Paulo in a larger map
Paraisopolis
Ceu of Pantanal
Jardim Pantanal
Day Two was also a day that where going to a favales "Paraisopolis" this is one or maybe the biggest slum off Sao Paulo. Also there SEHAB is doing more than one project, mostly to try to make the infrastucture better but when it is nessesay there will be a social housing project for people how can not be (re)located inside off the favela.
Interested was that were a interfention was made the houses where directly inproved, here you can see people are getting more convinced the there will be not demolished. This part of the favela is the "older" part is now 25 years old and evolved, inhabitants are still improving and decorating there homes but building is not very common in this part. on the other side of the favela is a new site with the first settlements of wood and steel wave plate, this place is the last to occupy because off risk off flooding.
TECHNICAL ANGLE
site I
1á2á3 building stories hight
Concrete columns with brick fillings
some housing is plastered and than also painted
electricity, water is present
sewerage is on the moment getting build
site II
1 storie buildings
Wood and steel waveplates
no flooring
no doors or windows
no infrastructure
Day 3 [8th of April]
Alphaville
Conjunto National
After 2 interesting lectures in the morning we went to a place called alphaville this is a "little" city and is a more seen concept of dwelling called Gated Community's the strange thing is that it is a world up side down the people how are supposed to be free are behind fences and the "unsafe" people walking freely outside the fence, this concept is a reaction a the great money differences where the rich people are becoming scared of humans that are not the same as there one. the neighborhood wasn't that spectectulare only that there were only villa's off 2 / 3.000.000 Real. the more important part was the gate where standing for 30 min. before we could enter the City. After the City where went to a private shopping mall with same concept as the city interesting is when you can get inside and when your not allowed after this we had a very nice building visit at the Contunto with a overview off the city.
Day 4 [9th of April]
Lectures at SEHAB
Downtown visit
A Lecture from Elisabette Franca about the different kinds off slum was interesting but was really off viewing point of the SEHAB People and governementeel thinking therefore there was little room for discussion, the social housing there were presenting was in the typology off the 70' of the Netherlands. In the afternoon we had a excursion underneath the highway viaducts where there where 3 project one was a social come to getter and recycling cooperation's.
View 06-04-2009 First Week CSI Sao Paulo in a larger map
Cantinho do ceu
First day with the group we went to a Project where SEHAB was working on the slum Cantinho de Ceu this was a slum what was directly beside a lake off the region off Sao Paulo therefore it is very strange there are slums and not more luxury's housing. A hypnotise is that 25 years ago the place was far away from the city with a bad infrastructure. Knowing this is a Good location the question is how long the Slum is staying here and is replace with luxury's housing, therefore maybe it is not really a good thing there is a new infrastructure thru where the Housing rates are going up.
Interesting thing also is the way the are trying to make a park at the border off the lake, this way there is a buffer between the lake and the houses so when the water is higher the housing will not be floated, off course this is a good thing but people how where living there are now moved away hopefully in the same favela. Making a way to witstand this floats are also a good alternative example good be a embankment or housing on columns or higher ground.
TECHNICAL ANGLE
Housing block off 25x5 metre
Building typology :
1á2 building stories hight
Concrete columns with brick fillings
some housing is plastered and than also painted
windows and fencing are commen
electricity is present
water, sewerage is present or being build
Day 2 [7th of April]
View 07-04-2009 First week CSI Sao Paulo in a larger map
Paraisopolis
Ceu of Pantanal
Jardim Pantanal
Day Two was also a day that where going to a favales "Paraisopolis" this is one or maybe the biggest slum off Sao Paulo. Also there SEHAB is doing more than one project, mostly to try to make the infrastucture better but when it is nessesay there will be a social housing project for people how can not be (re)located inside off the favela.
Interested was that were a interfention was made the houses where directly inproved, here you can see people are getting more convinced the there will be not demolished. This part of the favela is the "older" part is now 25 years old and evolved, inhabitants are still improving and decorating there homes but building is not very common in this part. on the other side of the favela is a new site with the first settlements of wood and steel wave plate, this place is the last to occupy because off risk off flooding.
TECHNICAL ANGLE
site I
1á2á3 building stories hight
Concrete columns with brick fillings
some housing is plastered and than also painted
electricity, water is present
sewerage is on the moment getting build
site II
1 storie buildings
Wood and steel waveplates
no flooring
no doors or windows
no infrastructure
Day 3 [8th of April]
Alphaville
Conjunto National
After 2 interesting lectures in the morning we went to a place called alphaville this is a "little" city and is a more seen concept of dwelling called Gated Community's the strange thing is that it is a world up side down the people how are supposed to be free are behind fences and the "unsafe" people walking freely outside the fence, this concept is a reaction a the great money differences where the rich people are becoming scared of humans that are not the same as there one. the neighborhood wasn't that spectectulare only that there were only villa's off 2 / 3.000.000 Real. the more important part was the gate where standing for 30 min. before we could enter the City. After the City where went to a private shopping mall with same concept as the city interesting is when you can get inside and when your not allowed after this we had a very nice building visit at the Contunto with a overview off the city.
Day 4 [9th of April]
Lectures at SEHAB
Downtown visit
A Lecture from Elisabette Franca about the different kinds off slum was interesting but was really off viewing point of the SEHAB People and governementeel thinking therefore there was little room for discussion, the social housing there were presenting was in the typology off the 70' of the Netherlands. In the afternoon we had a excursion underneath the highway viaducts where there where 3 project one was a social come to getter and recycling cooperation's.
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