The design for the Instituto Socioambiental—ISA (Social and Environmental Institute) headquarters, located in the heart of the Amazon region, on the bank of the Negro River, started with a rationalist statement—a white masonry cube, 16 m (52 ft) to a side and three storeys high. The single block, like the huge maloca (spatious lodge built by the Indian peoples as a communal dwelling placethat embraces it, was built to house the annual meetings of the federation of 22 native peoples occupying the area of the region’s reserve, and recovers ancient local construction techniques. The maloca, like the white cube, also represents collective work and celebration.

The integration of the project with the region was accomplished, first and foremost, by the incorporation of the traditional knowledge and techniques of the region’s inhabitants. This is reflected in the attention to environmental comfort and climate of the tropical region, in safety regarding the forest, and especially, in the choice of constructive techniques that use locally available materials and labour, which means a cost and time saving design aimed at environmental and cultural integration. The cube is hence encircled by a sheltering terrace that protects it from the weather and offers a view of the Negro River and the forest. The parapet rails and stairways, protected by trellises made of wood and vines which mark the horizontal and vertical circulation routes, provide shade for the deliberately set back white walls.

(…)

SANTOS, Cecilia Rodrigues dos – Headquarters of Instituto Socioambiental.

In: CALDEIRA, Vasco; FANUCCI, Francisco; FERRAZ, Marcelo; SANTOS, Cecilia Rodrigues dos – Francisco Fanucci, Marcelo Ferraz: Brasil Arquitetura Studio. São Paulo: Cosac Naify, 2005.

Auditório, apartamentos para pesquisadores, terraço para festas e estar