Porto Workshop Brief & Itinerary

8/12/2019 Porto Workshop Brief & Itinerary

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Introduction:

The 2013/2014 MARCH overseas workshop will be based in Portugals second city,Porto.

Porto has an historic centre with an urban fabric of high townscape value, withevidence of urban development from the Roman, medieval, and Almadas periods.The active social and institutional tissue of the town ensures its survival as a livinghistoric centre. It is a collective work, not accomplished at a particular moment butthe result of successive contributions. One of the most relevant aspects of Porto isits scenic character, resulting from the complexity of the landform, and the dialoguewith the river.

There has been human occupation on the site of modern Porto, at the mouth of theDouro River, since the 8th century BC. There the Romans established a town under

the name of Portus. With the arrival in the early 5th century of the barbarians, thetown became very important as an administrative and trading centre. By the early

MARCH7006Urban Design

Porto Workshop 2013/2014


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11th century, it was firmly established as part of the Castilian realm. The first periodof expansion came with the construction in 1374 of a new town wall protecting thetwo urban nuclei - the original medieval town and the hitherto extramural harborarea.

The historic centre is enclosed within the enceinte of the 14th-century Fernandinewalls, together with some smaller areas that retain their medieval characteristics.This area conserves to a large extent the medieval town plan and urban fabric, withsome later monumental insertions.

English entrepreneurs invested in the vineyards of the Douro valley, to supply thehuge English market, and Porto, as the port for the export of these wines, benefitedgreatly, resulting in the wealth of Baroque buildings in the town centre.Porto was the birthplace of the Liberal Revolution in 1820, which led to the adoptionby the monarchy of the Seminal Constitution of 1822. During the 19th century, the

town centre moved from the banks of the river to the new developments around thePraa da Liberdade: Gustav Eiffel designed the railway bridge across the river(1875).

It was this movement of the commercial centre northwards during the nineteenthand early twentieth centurys, abandoning the medieval core to the urban poor, thatresulted in its survival.

During the last 20 years this area has been rediscovered, valued for its historicfabric and picturesque townscape, it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage sitein 1996.


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The focus of the historic core of the city is the River Porto and it is this together withits distinctive topography which defines much of the character of the old city.

Itinerary:The workshop is scheduled between Monday 30thSeptember and Thursday 03rdOctober 2013, inclusive, however students are encouraged to expand upon the coretime as travel arrangements allow.

Monday 30thSept10.00 Introduction and orientation meeting Avenida Dos Aliados (if rainingthen Cafe Ceuta, Rue de Ceuta).11.00 walking tour of central Porto, including study area A and study area B.1.00 lunch3.30 walk to Architecture School (Alvaro Siza) and study area C.

6.00 end

Tuesday 01stOct

10.00 meet Casa da Musica, Av da Boavista, (OMA) tour12.00 walk/bus to Serralves Museum via Egreja de Nossa Senhora daBoavistaLunch1.30 tour of Serralves Museum (Alvaro Siza)4.00 bus to Matosinos and walk along beach to Open air Swimming pool(Siza) and Casa de Cha da Boa Nova (Siza)7.00 evening meal in Matasinos


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Wednesday 02ndOct

10.00 group visits to individual study areas, measure/photograph/analyse,including nominated group representatives visit to city archive.2.00 meet on quayside Gaia, boat trip along Douro (10 euros, 1 hour)4.00 tour of Taylors Port lodge, and de-brief on site info.

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Thursday 03rdOct9.00 meet Avenida Dos Aliados9.25 train - Optional trip to Quinta do Vallado wine/port vineyard (9.50 euros)This is a 1.5 hr train journey up the Douro river and a short taxi journey.Continue study area analysis7.00 end

Building Visits:

Monday will be an extensive walking tour of Porto (be prepared to walk a lot,including hills), as part of this we will pass a number of key buildings in the city:

Bolbao marketCafe MajesticColiseu do PortoPonte D Maria Pia (Eiffel)Bento train stationCathedral & Bishops palacePonte Luis I (Eiffel)Bars on Gaia quayside (Guedes & de Campos)2008Biblioteca Almeida Garrett (J Manuel Soares) 2001Architecture school (Siza)1993, 1999Planterium (J Manuel Soares) 1998

Tuesday is an intensive day of building visits:Casa do Musica (OMA)2005 guided tour 1.5 hoursBurgo office complex (E Souto Moura) 2007 exteriorIgreja de Nossa Senhora da Boavista (Ricca)1979 exterior (possible interior)Vodaphone offices (Barbosa & Guimares) 2009 exteriorMuseu de Arte Contemporanea de Serralves (Siza) 1999 interior & exterior 2 hoursPiscina de Leca de Palmeira (Siza) 1966Casa de Che Boa Nova (Siza) 1963 exterior and interior

Thursday there is an optional trip by train to see a couple of buildings outside Porto:Quinta do Vallado vineyard (Guedes & de Campos) 2009 guided tour 1 hourIgreja de Santa Maria, M de Canaveses (Siza) 1996 exterior and interior


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Ponte D Maria Pia (Eiffel) Coliseu do Porto 1941

Cathedral & Bishops palace cable car station 2011


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Serralves (Siza) 1999 Casa do Musica (OMA) 2005

Igreja de Nossa Senhora Burgo office complex (E Souto Moura)


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Architecture school (Siza) Vodaphone offices (Barbosa & Guimares)

Piscina de Leca de Palmeira (Siza) Quinta do Vallado vineyard


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Workshop Tasks:To be read in conjunction with module 7006 (Urban Design) & 7002 (Urban Design)project briefs

6th years, having undertaken an extensive desk based analysis of the key study

areas of Porto and selected your groups, you will have the opportunity during thestudy visit to examine in detail the reality of each urban situation.It is critical that you take measurements of the level changes and sectional conditionas there as each site has a complex topography. We have detailed plans at 1:1000but these lack spot heights. This is the best opportunity to start to develop yourgroup urban strategies, start thinking about function, connectivity, permeability,legibility, views, landmarks, routes and pathways while you can text these ideas insitu.Each group should nominate one person who can visit the city archive (Casa doInfante, R de Alfandega) open 9.00-5.00 where there is an extensive library on thehistory of the development of Porto and digital versions of historic maps which maybe downloaded (take a memory stick).

5thyears, should undertake work in accordance with module 7002. In addition to theobvious walking around photographing the study areas you should ensure that youhave collected sufficient information to enable the construction of group 1:500 basemodels upon your return.

Study Areas:There are 3 study areas within Porto:


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Area A eastern slopes between the two Eiffel bridges, very steep topographyrunning down to the banks of the Douro with barrio housing and small allotments.This is a poor area with some historic urban fabric, including the landmark of theSalesian college and adjacent cemetery and the Ponte D Maria Pia (Eiffel).Traversed by railway lines and bridges the difficult terrain is mainly occupied by

slum housing which has become regularised over time. Despite its proximity to thecity centre and river frontage this area remains very poor and under-developed.This area is in two parts A1 and A2 due to its length.


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Area B between the cathedral and the Bento train station, this was originally theapproach to the main road and tram bridge, Ponte Luis I (Eiffel). The area has beenpartly cleared of high density mixed use buildings but recent traffic calming has lefta large gap site between some of the cities principal landmarks. A small 1970sbrutalist market building edges the western side with the cliff edge to the east. This

area is a conspicuous gap within the urban core, surrounded by many of theprincipal public buildings and has been identified as requiring development in theUNESCO World Heritage site management plan.


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Area C a transect through the escarpment from the quayside housing on thebanks of the Douro upto the university campus. A disparate area with fragments ofhistoric fabric, allotments, university halls of residence and Alvaro SizasArchitecture School complex. There are numerous small pedestrian pathwaysthreading through this area but legibility is weak and many sites remain

undeveloped. The Architecture School itself sits in glorious isolation from the rest ofthe campus, separated by the approaches to the ring road. Excellent views from thecrest of the hill towards the city centre and the sea are blocked and overall urbanconnectivity is poor.


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Travel, Logistics & Accommodation:Students are responsible for making their own travel arrangements to and fromPorto. Ryanair fly from Liverpool direct to Porto twice a week (Sunday eveningsand Thursday evenings), in addition Easyjet fly from Liverpool to Lisbon and there isa fast train service between Lisbon and Porto.

From Porto airport you should get the metro to the city centre, the most centralstations are Trindade, Aliados and S. Bento. Travel passes and individual ticketscan be purchased from (Andante) machines in the airport station lobby, they do24hr and 72 hr passes as well as single tickets which are valid for an hour.

If you are arriving by train intercity services come into Campanha station which is inthe eastern suburbs, from here you can either get the metro to Trindade or theoverground to S Bento station.

Ian, Jamie and Dominic will be flying out with Ryanair from Liverpool on Sunday 29thSeptember and returning on Thursday 03rdOct.

Students wanting to take part in the river trip this has a 10 euro charge and the costof the return train for those visiting Quinta do Vallado on Thursday is approx 10euros, plus a few euros for the taxi.

Students are responsible for booking their own accommodation in Porto, here arethe details of some places used by students in previous years:

Porto = Porto Spot Hotel, Rua Goncalo Cristovao no12,Porto,Portugal.tel: +351 22 40852 05

Hotel America, Rue de Santa Catarina 1018, Bonfim, Porto, 4000-447 Portugal

Ian, Jamie, and Dominic are staying atHotel Eurostars Das ArtesRua Do Rosario 160, Oporto, Portugal4050 - 521Tel: 00351 902270127

In case of emergencies our mobile phone numbers are:Dominic 00 44 (0)7515 985979IanJamie
http://www.hostelworld.com/hostels/Porto/Portugalhttp://www.hostelworld.com/hostels/Portugalhttp://www.hostelworld.com/hostels/Portugalhttp://www.hostelworld.com/hostels/Porto/Portugal


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Metro map


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Health & Safety:Please bear in mind the following information:

All students need to have signed and returned to the general office the LJMU travelinsurance form, you will not be allowed to travel without this. The form will be issued

at the presentation and will be available on BB.

Whilst Porto is a safe and vibrant city, the usual caution should be exercised,particularly in quieter areas at night.

The study areas, in particular Area A contain a lot of close knit poor housing andcaution and discretion should be shown, avoid disturbing residents privacy, try notto flash cameras around too openly and best to stay in groups. This area also hasan unguarded open level crossing, and some very steep topography.

And try not to eat this stuff!!A supposed local delicacy called Francesinha, it consists of steak, sausage, hambetween toasted white bread covered in melted cheese and dripping in very saltygravyit will probably shorten your life by about 10 years.


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City centre

Central Porto and suburbs

Porto Workshop Brief & Itinerary

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