The Brazilian Ground Floor as an ‘Infi nite Span’

One of the main characteristics of modern Brazilian architecture is the centrality of the structure in defining the shapes and volumes of buildings. From an early stage, this prominence of the structure was linked to a search for lightness, in which buildings sought to break free from the ground, either by rising on pilotis or by means of large spans and cantilevers, reducing the number of pillars. This is what happens in the case of the MASP (São Paulo Museum of Art), designed by Lina Bo Bardi, in which the suspension of the volume creates a large, shaded plaza, which is defi ned as one of the liveliest public spaces in São Paulo. This is why the desire to suspend buildings using large structures responds not only to a formal intention, but also to the goal of creating plazas and squares in cities that lack them, where public spaces have historically tended to be privatized. Comparing the case of Brazilian and Portuguese architecture, we can also see a suggestive inversion. While in Brazil we see the predominance of large spans in favour of a light and airy architecture, in Portugal the local tradition is that of ‘plain architecture’, less focused on utopia than on realistic pragmatism.