Álvaro Siza

Textos

Giovanni Chiaramonte

In 1984, Giovanni Chiaramonte photographed Álvaro Siza's building in Berlin, on whose façade some young people had written Bonjour Tristesse. The image was published on the cover of the magazine Lotus International. The following year, Siza and Chiaramonte met in Évora, on the occasion of a new series by the Italian photographer featuring the buildings of the great Portuguese architect. It marked the beginning of a long friendship and a shared reflection on architecture, photography, and urban life. The Measure of the West presents a selection of sixty drawings by Siza and forty photographs taken by Chiaramonte in cities around the world. They make up two parallel routes that lead to the discovery of the shape of the modern city – always hanging in the balance between proportion, in which civilization can develop, and disproportion, in which civilization can go astray. Although animated by different intentions, these sketches and photographs appear as coherent traces of the same design, guided by the same desire to see, discover, understand, and learn. The differences between the black and white strokes of the drawings and the colour of the photographs disappear. Short texts, including thoughts on architecture, photography, drawing, representation, and nature, enrich a "poem of change" taking place in an era of globalization.

A Representation of Travel

Measure of the West

Peter Testa

José Paulo dos Santos

Works & Projects 1954-1992

Alvaro Siza

Luis Muñoz

Carlos Seoane

F.C.I. Siza

Cecil Balmond

Eduardo Souto de Moura

Álvaro Siza and Eduardo Souto De Móura: Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2005~ISBN 1-904563-48-1 U.S. $34.95 / Hardcover, 8 x 8 in. / 144 pgs / Illustrated throughout. ~Item / March / Architecture

Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2005

Master lessons

Wilfried Wang

Alvaro Siza; Stadtskizzen

Álvaro Siza was awarded the Pritzker Prize for his life's work in 1992 and is one of the most renowned contemporary architects. Amongst many accolades, he received the Golden Lion at the Venice Biennale of Architecture in 2002 and 2012. The current exhibition at the Museum for Architectural Drawing provides an intimate view into Siza's work, illustrated by sensitive and playful sketches that contrast with the monumentality of his buildings. Drawings by his late wife, Maria Antónia Siza, are also on display for the first time to a wider public, as well as drafts by his son, Álvaro Leite Siza, and grandson, Henrique Siza. The drawings are from the Siza family's own collection and include sketches from known and less well-known projects, as well as architectural fantasies.

unseen & unknown

Siza

Álvaro Siza

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