The
Nova Architecture was a Brazilian movement that emerged in the late 1960s aimed at rethinking the role of the architect, the project, and construction in society. Formed by young professionals linked to the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism of the University of São Paulo (FAU-USP), such as
Sérgio Ferro,
Rodrigo Lefèvre, and
Flávio Império, the group had the architect
João Batista Vilanova Artigas, one of the leading figures of the so-called Paulista School, as a major reference.
What was Nova Architecture?
During the 1950s and 1960s, Brazil experienced a period of rapid modernization. Major public works and the consolidation of modern architecture, represented by figures such as Oscar Niemeyer and Lúcio Costa, brought the country to international prominence. However, part of the new generation of architects began to see limitations in this model, particularly in the gap between the created project and the available specialized workforce. Nova Architecture was born from these reflections on the actual architectural practice. Its members sought a practice more integrated with the construction projects, with the goal of better understanding the techniques, material limitations, and real working conditions involved in the construction.
The role of the construction projects in Nova Architecture
The construction projects were the central point of the group's reflection. For the architects of Nova Architecture, it was not just the physical location where the project took shape, but a true laboratory of experimentation, the space where design, technique, and practical knowledge met.
In this projects, the architect should act not as a distant observer, but as someone present and participatory, following and
learning from the construction process. This vision brought the architect closer to the workers, promoting an
exchange of knowledge that made the result more coherent and authentic.
The appreciation of the construction projects was also linked to the idea of
construction transparency: the projects of Nova Architecture sought to show how they were made, revealing structures, joints, and textures without resorting to finishes that would mask the process. This material sincerity reinforced the bond between the project and practice.
Principles and characteristics of the movement
Nova Architecture was not a formal style, but a set of principles and reflections on the practice of architecture. Among the most important are:
- Integration between project and execution: the design should consider the construction process from the outset.
- Appreciation of manual labor: the technical knowledge of workers and site masters was recognized as an essential part of architectural creation.
- Rational use of materials: the aim was to employ available resources in an economical and sustainable way.
- Structural and constructive clarity: the works were designed to highlight how they were made, without hiding beams, pillars, or textures. These ideas resulted in a direct, functional, and expressive architecture, in which each constructive element contributed to the aesthetic and technical result.
Notable works and experiences
Among the most significant examples of Nova Architecture are the Casa Pery Campos (1963) and the Casa Bernardo Issler (1964), both in São Paulo.
Designed by
Rodrigo Lefèvre,
Sérgio Ferro, and
Flávio Império, these residences synthesize the quest for an architecture that integrates design and construction, valuing the construction projects as creative spaces.
More than isolated buildings, these experiences helped to form a new professional mindset, with a view of architecture as a practice integrated with reality and not merely as an exercise in aesthetic creation, thinking beyond the drawing board.
Legacy and influence on contemporary architecture
Although it was a brief movement, Nova Architecture left a lasting legacy. Its greatest impact may have been redefining the relationship between the architect and the construction projects. The idea that the project should dialogue with the construction process profoundly influenced architecture education and practice in Brazil.
Today, many of the principles proposed by the group are present in contemporary approaches, such as
participatory architecture, the
conscious use of materials, and
low environmental impact constructions. In all these practices, the construction projects are again understood as spaces of learning and collaboration — not just the end of the project, but an essential part of it. The reflection initiated by Nova Architecture contributed to making Brazilian architecture
more aware of the value of the process, the technique, and the people involved in construction.
From construction projects to self-managed collectives
From the reflections of Nova Architecture, some of its practical developments manifested in the following decades in experiences of
self-managed collectives — collective initiatives where residents, communities, and architects worked together in the construction of housing.
These experiences expanded the notion of the construction projects as educational and collective spaces. This way of working, revived by various universities and housing movements since the 1980s, brought architectural practice closer to a more community-oriented and cooperative dimension.
Projects of this kind sought to respond to an old challenge of Brazilian architecture: to reconcile spatial quality and construction technique with the resources and active participation of future residents. The book
'Nova Architecture' by
Pedro Fiori Arantes revisits this trajectory and highlights how the pedagogy of the construction projects inspired new forms of collective organization in the field of housing. These practices reveal that, even in the face of different historical contexts, the ideal of architecture built
with people and not just for them remains one of the most consistent legacies of Nova Architecture.
