Eduardo Souto De Moura

by Antonio Esposito, Giovanni Leoni

Among contemporary Portuguese architects there is a large group whose members, while trained or influenced by Alvaro Siza, have embarked on an independent line of common research; one of these is Eduardo Souto de Moura (b. 1952). This monograph presents the designer who has combined great attention to the "principle of settlement" with a respect for local architecture, expressed through the use of natural materials. Souta de Moura transforms the figurative elements of classical architecture using a modern sensibility. A minimalist approach and the discreet use of local materials are the essential components of his activity. Among his best-known the Municipal Market in Braga (1980-84), the cultural center for the S.E.C. at Oporto (1981-91), houses at Miramar (1987-91) and Alcanena (1987-92), the patio houses at Matosinhos (1993-99) and the Portuguese pavilion at the Hannover Expo 2000 with Siza (1999). Essays by the authors, along with an interview with Siza, Francisco Tavora and Souto de Moura himself, introduce the architect's work.

Genres: Architecture

448 pages, Hardcover

First published July 7, 2004

Reviews

[Sonntag · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Complete Retrospective-

The tragedy of Souto de Moura is people often compare Souto de Mouras' work with his protégé Siza like Carl Jung to Sigmund Freud. Although both architects shared some similarities but their design terminologies are quite different. Siza perceive architecture as a sculptor, and he carve spaces from monolithic materials. Souto de Moura on the other hand is a rationalist, and his buildings are largely determined by programmatic function at a given site. If you don’t believe my observation then compare both architects’ plans side by side. Souto De Moura’s are more orthogonal and logical, and Siza’s are just full of surprises. Aesthetic are not preconceived factor that drive Souto de Moura’s design, but nevertheless his buildings are stunning.
The massive 480 pages volume is a revised edition of 2006 first edition with new important projects added such as Casa das Histórias Paula Rego. It's the one book to buy if you want to have scholastic understanding of his work. The book contains beautiful building photographs, clear and detail drawings plus diagrams, models of the projects, comprehensive writing of architect’s lifework, etc. You name it the book got it. El Croquis also came up with 3 monographs of the architect and of course they are superb. But spending more than $200 (since the first volume is out of print) versus $50 under, it’s not hard to think de Moura and pick the later. But if you are a hopeless architectural book geek then you must have them all, like me. Trust me, it's not easy skipping Christmas gifts for your family and friends for 10 years in a row…


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[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eduardo Souto De Moura is one of portugal's leading architects and this publication covers a number of his projects. the illustrations and drawings are good and assist in contextualising souto de moura at the intellectual heart of the porto school. the essays are rather hagiographic which detracts from the otherwise high level of the content and appraisal but all conspire to effectively inform the reader about the work. the relationship between souto de moura and siza is interesting and this book describes the relationship through their work and approach.