CHROMATIC HARMONY IN ARCHITECTURE AND THE WORK OF ARTACHO JURADO IN SÃO PAULO (original) (raw)

2010, Colour Design and Creativity

The purpose of this paper is to present the partial results of a research still in progress as part of the Architecture Course of the University of São Paulo, focusing on the use of color in the development of architectural design. At its present stage, the researchers are reviewing the production of a number of architects and designers whose work, under the point of view of design methodology, has been somehow distinctive in the use of color, with focus on color insertion processes, perception theories, and color harmony. The review is based on comparative studies of the results so far obtained. João Artacho Jurado was born in São Paulo in 1903 to parents who were Spanish immigrants. He lived with his family in an anarchist community without attending school—a circumstance that made of him a self-taught person. He began his professional career dealing with signs and lettering, and later on, from the 40s though the 60s, he gradually became one of the most productive builders in São Paulo. His projects were emphatically rejected by the elite of Brazilian architects greatly influenced by the Modern Movement in Architecture, which, in Brazil, reached its climax with the inauguration of Brasília in the 60s. At that time, São Paulo, in particular, was exposed to the influence of some European architects who settled in São Paulo and developed important projects that reinforced the vocation for a more rationalistic architecture. Jurado’s designs, however, were extraordinarily well received by the representatives of a middle class that was moving up the social ladder and seeking to dtisplay its opulence. Such acceptance could have been considered as a normal occurrence if i were not for the daring compositions of form and color adopted by Jurado. The buildings designed and constructed by him have maintained their high commercial value up to present times, and perhaps on account of their exotic nature continue to be in very high demand among artists and intellectuals. One may say that Jurado revolutionized the real estate market of his time by developing audacious projects and concepts that fulfilled the aspirations of a middle class in expansion. Our intention here is to discuss the use of color harmony in architecture on the basis of Jurado’s work, which greatly pleased some groups, and at the same time, displeased other groups in the same degree. This fact alone makes it difficult for anyone to take a neutral stance, as it could be expected, in regard to architectural concepts that were developed with essentially commercial purposes in mind. This paper intends to summarize some theoretical concepts and to define a few methodology aspects of the research.