BRASILIA

"We have turned our back on the sea and penetrated to the heartland of the nation. Now the people realize their strength.'‘ - Juscelino Kubitschek

BRASILIA . . .

BRASILIA . . .VISION. . .

Brasilia symbolizes brazil’s coming of age, her takeoff into mature nationhood, a break from sleepy agrarian semicolonial past & sweet life of the coastal centres , into a future of pioneering growth in the interior & in the realm of industrial production. The capital symbolizes the optimistic mood of developmentism & is to be at the center of a network of jungle-cutting highways such as the one between brasilia & the amazonian port city of Belem.

Brasilia for its defenders,

BRASILIA . . .VISION. . .

Brasilia for its detractors,

The city is a monumental urbanistic & social disaster, a venture into conspicuous consumption on a national scale, the source of crippling inflation. It is the demagogic, megalomaniac adventure of a populist politician bent on personal enrichment & seeking a cheap way to win a place in history. Brasilia’s existence by now must grudgingly be conceded, but to these critics it remain a potemkin village in the midst of sea of poverty, corruption, disease & despair.

BRASILIA . . .

Fig. 1 brazil map

Fig. 2 Google image

Fig. 3 Google image

VISION. . .

The main reason of formation of new national capital was to take development in interior of the Brazilian plateau.

BRASILIA . . .

Fig. 4 plan by Ney Goncalves,Baruch milman, Joao henrique rocha

Fig. 5 plan by MMM roberto firm

COMPETITION ENTRIES . . .

The competition of designing master plan for Brasilia was undertaken by panel headed by ar. Oscar niemeyer

BRASILIA . . .COMPETITION ENTRIES . . .

Fig. 6 plan by Ney Goncalves,Baruch milman, Joao henrique rocha

Fig. 7 plan by MMM roberto firm

BRASILIA . . .COSTA’S PLAN. . .

BRASILIA . . .MASTERPLAN . . .

Lucio costa’s plan divided brasilia into two principal parts, the monumental axis & the residential axis, the latter in turn being divided into what have come to be called the south & north wings. Conceptually , the plan has four parts1. The government buildings2. The residential zone of superblock3. The vehicular circulatory system4. The city center

BRASILIA . . .COSTA’S PLAN. . .

Fig. 8 initial sketch by lucio costa

Fig. 9 concept sketch

Fig. 10 key plan

BRASILIA . . .INSPIRATION. . .

radiant city- Le Corbusier

Brasilia- costa’s plan

BRASILIA . . .INSPIRATION. . .

Fig. 15 radiant city- Le Corbusier

The inspiration of Brasilia from corbusier’s radiant city is its monumental scale & futuristic outlook.

BRASILIA . . .AXIS . . .

Monumental axis

Hills terrain

Water body

The orientation of main monumental axis is guided by the presence of water body & hilly terrain around site

BRASILIA . . .MASTER PLAN . . .

Fig. 11 Master plan by lucio costa

BRASILIA . . .

Fig. 12 residential super block

RESDENTIAL SUPER BLOCK . . .

Institution areas

Commercial areas

Residential areas

BRASILIA . . .

Fig. 13 residential super block-open spaces

RESDENTIAL SUPER BLOCK . . .

BRASILIA . . .RESDENTIAL SUPER BLOCK . . .

Vehicular axisPedestrian axis The master plan of Brasilia lacks consideration of pedestrian movement as most

of spaces are planned according to concept of radiant city which is more of vehicular oriented planning.

BRASILIA . . .RESDENTIAL SUPER BLOCK . . .

BRASILIA . . .MONUMENTAL AXIS . . .

Fig. 14 monumental axis structures

BRASILIA . . .FORMATION OF SATELLITE TOWNS . . .

BRASILIA . . .CONCLUSION . . .

1. The monumentalist emphasis on dramatic architecture & broad vistas.

2. The favoring of automotive circulation in spite of the fact that cars remains a luxury for vast majority of Brazilian population.

3. Only cursory attention being paid to the needs & desire of first residents & to the lower-class residents in general.

4. The non-development, static, or skeletal character of the plan, expressed as a final output rather than a process of growth which at all stages would involve human lives.

5. The necessity, given prevailing political practice in brazil, of finishing the city according to plan within a three-year period if it was not to be later abandoned.

6. The centralized character of the planning & execution processes themselves, with no provision for consultation or participation by any but upper-level technical & political personnel.