Forma da arquitetura que anima a Praia da Pipa: nexos entre configuração espacial, movimento e interfaces edifícios-rua em uma vila costeira no nordeste do Brasil

Abstract

This dissertation addresses relations between architectural form and urban animation, founded on a case study of Praia da Pipa, RN, Brazil, a coastal settlement, which is well-established as a national and international visitor destination. It was seen that the spatial arrangement of public roads affects differently the potential for movement and encounter in the various localities that comprise the municipality of Tibau do Sul, the district of Pipa being one. It was also seen that some sections of Baía dos Golfinhos avenue, a narrow street situated in Pipa but away from the beach and with no view of the sea, attracts pedestrian movement in a greater proportion than any other point on the road grid of Tibau do Sul. It is here proposed that over and above the privileged natural attributes of Pipa and its surroundings, the overall access structure explains that inflow. Accessibility parameters regarding movement potential and human activity on the streets, as explored here, are based on the theory of The Social Logic of Space (HILLIER; HANSON, 1984), which relates the spatial structure to social, economic and environmental phenomena. The extent to which the spatial structure encourages street animation was examined and how it relates to the permeability of private premises alongside the public realm. Results indicate that in the notoriously animated and popular meeting spots of Baía dos Golfinhos Avenue, the busiest areas are the topologically privileged ones, sided by non-residential buildings which open onto the street, whereas highly accessible tracts with poor building-street interfaces, show little or no animation. It is thus suggested that the informal occupation pattern prevalent in most settlements of the Tibau do Sul’s municipality — a segmented road grid coupled to a dense land parcelling filled with buildings directly permeable to the roads — favours pedestrian movement, whereas bulky plot occupation — usually impervious to the roadways — or the grounds left empty as land stock, inhibit pedestrian activity. This kind of occupation, mostly found in expansion areas, tends to a vehicle-dependent movement mode, which is poorer in animation, whose nuances may be explained by the combination of diverse levels of road accessibility and of public-private interface patterns. The construction of a road ring — also investigated — has had little impact on the access structure, while apparently contributing to extend the area of vehicle-dependent circulation. In conclusion, the architectural form of voids, the space, carries animation to where the architectural form of solids, the building interface, welcomes it.