Quality, respect, and political disappointment - by Eduardo Souto de Moura

Eduardo Souto de Moura started collaborating with Álvaro Siza during the revolution in Portugal, at a time when the country faced a dramatic housing shortage in the early 1970s that contributed to the energies of the so-called Carnation Revolution of 1974, after 40 years of dictatorship.

SAAL (Serviço Ambulatório de Apoio Local, or Local Ambulatory Support Service in English), which ran from 1974 to 1976, was an ambitious housing program created by Nuno Portas (Secretary of State of Housing and Urban Development after the revolution). It was a unique collaboration between architects and city-dwellers in need of decent, affordable housing. However, in October 1976, its coordination was handed over to the municipal authorities, causing the end of the development of SAAL projects in Porto, where the city council was very critical of the program.

The housing project S. Victor Social Housing (1974-1977), together with Bouça Housing Complex (1973-1978), both in Porto, are among Siza’s most politically engaged works. Both were part of the SAAL housing program.

▶️ This story was part of Eduardo Souto de Moura’s talk at our event in Madrid. You can find the full talk on our website: www.architectsnotarchitecture.com/archive/eduardo-…
On our website, you can find all our talks under “Archive.”

📸 Portrait picture of Siza by Fernando Guerra.

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