Metamorphosis of public space: relations between territory and politics in Casa Forte's square history

Abstract

The aim of this is to reflect about morphological transformations and metamorphosis that happened at Casa Forte’s Square. Based in Geography’s conception of city where form results of dialectic relation between territory and politics, this paper also aims to investigate how this relation happens in public space (Gomes, 2002). It is understood that space, public like urban spaces, is a product of the dialectic relation between political organization and territorial dynamics. At first, considerations about the notion of “territory”, “politics” and “city” are presented. After that, these notions are revealed in the case study of this paper, which is a public space. To understand the square’s morphology, to understand how quotidian practice affects and, at the same time, recognize the qualities of a space designed by the landscape designer Roberto Burle Marx, it was investigated three moments of its history: Casa Forte’s Fields, in the XVI Century; Casa Forte’s Gardens, in 1935; and nowadays, Casa Forte’s Square. The Square, because it was created by an artist, incorporate historical, artistic, symbolic and cultural dimensions that influence the process of production of this space. These dimensions makes Casa Forte’s Square distinct of other public spaces, and gives it characteristics of a patrimonial good.