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Este número especial surpreendeu pelo elevado número de propostas de artigos recebidas, o que pode ser interpretado como um indício de uma procura social derivada do contexto do Brasil num novo estatuto de envelhecimento avançado. E, à semelhança disso, são de esperar nas próximas décadas efeitos, fenômenos e pressões sobre as mais diversas áreas, como a economia e o sistema de pensões, o sistema de saúde e de cuidados, e até o próprio habitat, tanto da cidade como das edificações. Será necessário repensar os modelos territoriais e espaciais, bem como a sua gestão, num novo paradigma da “cidade do cuidado”. E isso exige novos conhecimentos numa perspectiva gerontológica, para os quais este dossiê Oculum Ensaios pretende contribuir.

Architecture in permanent transformation is the starting point of this article, focused on the interaction between material and social aspects of a case study on modern Mexican housing, observing the building’s life in relation to its inhabitants. The Multifamily Apartment Building for Teachers (Multifamiliar para maestros), a faculty housing building at the UNAM campus, is a mid-twentieth-century experimental housing project, developed at the beginning of Mexico City´s densification. Today it is registered in UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites. The case study sheds some important insights into the transformations of a spatial modern utopia facing inhabitants' needs. Numerous differences were detected between the original idea behind the building’s architecture and the reality of its users today, revealing not only the ambiguous nature of the building but also problems derived from the country’s accelerated modernization. The results show contrasting approaches of the intermediate space between the building’s conception, and the constant process of becoming a home, where the scope of its habitability is negotiated.

Most of the pretending innovative modern housing projects show a common element that can be perceived when looking at the cross-section, evidencing the use of alternate corridors, which was recognized as a projective technique under Wells Coates expression “Planning in Section”. Contrasting virtues concerning the resulting space were observed at different historical moments. The late 19th Century used it to create privacy. The modern architecture used it to increase efficiency, where flexibility was included. However, during the '60s, the alternative corridor technique started to be used to attend social issues, popularizing the split-level term, and echoing 19th Century privacy interests. Keywords like Smithson's “doorstep” and Candilis “semi-duplex” section reveal their approaches. Well-differentiated areas (public/intimate/collective) and socially controlled areas were obtained in domestic interiors with a few steps, creating singular spaces where children can play while being monitored by adults. Semi-duplex geometry showed new adaptability to different profiles: a small kitchenless apartment for a bachelor could be inserted aside from a larger two-level family apartment. This paper shows an overview of this projective technique by contrasting different housing projects. Since similar split-level geometries seem to have been coming back recently, questions about it are necessary.

ResumenA juzgar por la proliferación de los departamentos que en las grandes ciudades de Brasil se ofrecen con el atractivo de amplias e imponentes terrazas, podemos pensar que el proyecto habitacional vertical está pasando por un momento de redefinición con respecto a la idea de balcón tradicional, “varanda” en portugués. Se propone, a continuación, una lectura interdisciplinar realizada en un proyecto interinstitucional de departamentos de investigación en Brasil y México; se analizó este “espacio intermediario”, interfase entre el exterior y el interior, en el que se ven reflejados valores relacionados con el hedonismo contemporáneo, la vida al exterior y la socialización alrededor de la gastronomía; sutiles estrategias subyacentes de consecución y exhibición de estatus social. Presentamos una reflexión crítica a propósito de este dispositivo, del que se ha analizado su presentación en planos y discursos propagandísticos en la ciudad de São Paulo.Palabras clave: arquitectura brasileña, arquitectura hedonista, balcón, edificios de departamentos, edificios multifamiliares, espacio interior, terraza, vivienda múltiple.The Brazilian “varanda gourmet”: Hedonistic architecture and social distinctionAbstractJudging from the proliferation, in big Brazilian cities, of apartments that offer the attraction of large and imposing terraces, it is possible to think that the vertical housing project is going through a structural change in relation to the traditional balcony (varanda in Portuguese). This paper proposes an interdisciplinary reading, accomplished thanks to an inter-institutional project of different research departments in Brazil and Mexico, to analyze this “intermediary space”, this interface between the exterior and the interior, which reflects values related to contemporary hedonism, outdoor life, and socialization through gastronomy, with underlying and subtle strategies for achieving and exhibiting social status. We present a critical reflection about this device, which has been analyzed through its representation in maps and propagandistic discourses in the Sao Paulo area.Keywords: Brazilian architecture, hedonistic architecture, balcony, apartment buildings, multifamily buildings, interior space, terrace, multiple housing.A varanda gourmet brasileira: arquitetura hedonista e diferenciação socialResumoA julgar pela proliferação dos apartamentos que, nas grandes cidades do Brasil, oferecem como atrativo amplos e imponentes terraços, podemos pensar que o projeto habitacional vertical está passando por um momento de redefinição no que se refere à ideia de varanda tradicional. Nesse sentido, propõe-se, a seguir, uma leitura interdisciplinar realizada num projeto interinstitucional de departamentos de pesquisa no Brasil e no México; analisou-se esse “espaço intermediário”, interface entre o exterior e o interior, no qual se veem refletidos valores relacionados com o hedonismo contemporâneo, com a vida ao exterior e com a socialização da gastronomia; sutis estratégias subjacentes de consecução e exibição de status social. Apresentamos uma reflexão crítica a respeito desse dispositivo, do qual se analisou sua apresentação em plantas e discursos publicitários na cidade de São Paulo.Palavras-chave: arquitetura brasileira, arquitetura hedonista, edifícios de apartamentos, edifícios multifamiliares, espaço interior, moradia múltipla, terraço, varanda.Recibido: mayo 23 / 2016 Evaluado: marzo 16 / 2017 Aceptado: mayo 05 / 2017