Cais das Artes / Paulo Mendes da Rocha & METRO

The astounding confrontation between nature and construction, in this place, suggests the suspension of the buildings in the air, untangling the visuals for the landscape and the spectacle of the sea and dock`s works.

Composed by a Museum and a Theater equipped to host large scale art events, the architectural set designed for Cais das Artes (Quay of Arts), in Vitória, has as a main characteristic valuing the landscape and the historical surroundings of the city. Located on the Suá Bay, in a large plain field leveled with earth, in front of the canal that configures the island of Vitória, the project is a compliment to this territory, built on the astounding confrontation between nature and construction, in a city that is everyday excited due to the presence of the port and to the constant and energetic work done in the docks.

 An urban-oriented architectural action, in the sense of adjusting history and geography to a desired view of the present, indicating at the same time a museological conception, an effort to combine art and science, under an integrated perspective.

Counting with facilities such as cafés, bookstores and spaces that can host theatrical shows and open-air exhibitions, the new square shall be an attraction of the city’s cultural life. A place that, for its inherent spatial characteristics, allows the public to unveil the overwhelming landscape from a privileged standpoint.

With  a 3,000 square meter museum area and a Theater with capacity for 1,300 spectators, prepared for multiple uses, the Cais das Artes set aims at providing the city of Vitória with the necessary apparatus to receive major artistic spectacles, qualifying the town as a cultural host of national importance. The space is an attempt to include the city in the route of itinerant events (music concerts, dramatic plays, dance shows and art exhibitions) that travel through the great Brazilian capitals, to host great events, festivals, or even home based dance and music companies.
Plans
The Museum building is configured by two great beams made of parallel pre-stressed reinforced concrete that are 7 meters high, with only three points of support each, with 20 meters of distance between them. Between the main beams are located the halls, with a standard width of 20 meters and different lengths, distributed in three main levels. 

Plan 01

 These halls are open and they communicate visually to each other and to the square, through inclined window sashes that allow the entrance of indirect light reflected on the floor, but never with direct incidence of sunlight. These halls are primarily destined to exhibitions. The rest of the Program is concentrated in an annexed tower, which measures 22m x 22m and is 23m high, connected to the main volume through bridges.


The theater counts on two lateral galleries, with 10m of width, around the entire building extension, that is 69m long, that provides the circulation of public, artists, technicians, giving access to the dressing rooms and to technical and equipment rooms. Between the galleries, with 30 meters span, there are the Audience, the Balconies, the Stage and the Aisles.

Plan 02

Just like the Museum, the theater is also suspended and only the technical areas under the stage and the restaurant are based on the ground. The restaurant opens to a sidewalk close to the canal, covered by the theater building, that has the extremity pillars on the sea, five meters distant from the territory limit. This technical option is justified by the similarity between the ground under the sea and on land, provided this is a recently performed hydraulic embankment.
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Architect: Paulo Mendes da Rocha
Location: Vitória, ES, Brazil
Collaborators: Metro Arquitetos Associados, Martin Corullon, Anna Ferrari, Gustavo Cedroni, Flavio Rogozinski, Marcia Terazaki, Miki Itabashi (architects
Square total area: 26,500 sqm
Museum total area: 8,500 sqm
Theater total area: 14,000 sqm
Photographs: Courtesy of Paulo Mendes da Rocha

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