The Relationship between Portugal and Italy in the World of Architectural Culture, through the Lens of the Porto School of Fine Arts

Abstract

This article explores the relationship between Portugal and Italy in the world of architectural culture, through personal experience, academic training and professional practice at the Porto School of Fine Arts – during a period when little information in Portugal was published about architecture – and how some of the first major influences came from Italy, namely from Aldo Rossi and Vittorio Gregotti through Casabella. Through the student publication Páginas Brancas, the theme of attempting to understand the idea of the architectural School that was being formed, in close relation to the work of Italian architects, was also explored. Outside the School of Fine Arts, the lessons learned through studio work with Eduardo Souto Moura were explored, namely the influence of Italian architects, including Carlo Scarpa, Ignazio Gardella, Franco Albini, Giorgio Grassi, among others. This article argues that architecture is the result of a continuous process of learning and cultural absorption and that its slow digestion happens over time. In this sense, in the architectural culture of Portugal, Italy is very much present, proving the strong relationship between the two countries and the strong influence of each country on the other.