With a eucalyptus structure, the CASACOR Piauí environment is 95% reusable

When architect Paulo Müller began researching the phrase “ De presente, o agora ” (The Present, the Now), which symbolizes the theme of CASACOR 2024 , he soon began to look for the best way to rescue ancestry and pass on its legacy. When reflecting on the temporary and ephemeral nature of the exhibition, the first idea that emerged was to return to the nomadic architecture and design a space that could be easily dismantled, using a construction that would minimize the environmental impacts of disposal. In light of this, Paulo and his team looked for literature on the architectural techniques of nomadic peoples — who had to periodically migrate from place to place. Based on this study, the architect updated the methods used by his ancestors and presented at CASACOR Piauí 2024 a 95% reusable environment made with natural materials . “The message we want to convey to architecture in our environment is: nature is crying out for sustainability! ”, says Paulo. The GarArt Conceito space was designed with sustainable principles from the very beginning, he says: “Since the foundation of the space, we have used recycled ceramic blocks from demolition. I went to construction sites I knew in search of demolition bricks, this was the first sustainable approach of our space”. But what conceptualized the space designed by Paulo Müller was the structure made entirely of eucalyptus that surrounds the garage. In addition to referring to the regional characteristics of Piauí, the plant is configured as a ready-made raw material, which eliminated the need for other materials and ensured the sustainability of the construction. The eucalyptus leftovers were also reused to supply all the electricity for the space. Eucalyptus was also combined with wood from trees that were cut down at CASACOR to build a panel that covered one of the walls, which was named the “ reuse wall ”. “We took several types of wood that were on site, such as mango, cashew and eucalyptus itself, made tablets of different sizes and shapes, created a large panel and added water to drip onto the panel”, says Paulo. Later, the space would become a “ spiritual corner ”, says the architect, who invited artists to design ancestral elements and popular sayings in order to regionalize the environment .

“A beautiful garden cannot be made with just expensive and ornamental plants”

Instead of a high value-added landscaping, Paulo built a garden of sugar cane : “We seek to show that sugar cane is a sustainable and profitable consumer good, and that it was what sustained several generations of people from the Northeast who lived in agriculture.” The sugar cane distributed along the entrance to the space was combined with the reuse of stones that already existed in the pre-existing garden in the mansion that houses CASACOR Piauí.

In the architect's words, the GarArt Conceito garden exemplified that “ a beautiful garden is not made of expensive and ornamental plants alone ”. The design of the space was based on the reuse, repurposing and recycling of the work's own inputs: “It is common to hear that the construction industry is a very polluting industry due to the solid waste it produces during the construction process and the high level of waste. We try to minimize this as much as possible”, he says.

“It is 95% reusable: everything can be dismantled, everything can be reused”

To reach this statistic, which indicates that the environment is almost entirely reusable , Paulo and his team had to do a lot of research and creativity. So, they chose a burnt cement floor — later covered with symbolic graffiti art from Piauí — and a glass ceiling. In addition, the walls were made by artisans and the wooden structures were assembled using nail holes — a tactic that does not damage the material and, consequently, makes it possible to reuse it. “We show that natural, regional and ephemeral architecture can indeed have style, beauty and functionality. It can generate this feeling of natural shelter, based on this ancestral rescue,” says Paulo.

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CASACOR Piauí Service 2024

Where: Ave Zequinha Freire, 225 - Santa Isabel, Teresina (PI) When: May 16th to June 30th Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday and holidays, from 5pm to 10pm Digital box office: https://appcasacor.com.br/events/piaui-2024 Ticket prices: R$ 70 - Full R$ 35 - Half price R$ 210 - CASACOR Passport (individual and non-transferable, gives free access on all days of the exhibition) The ticket office is open until 9:30 pm.