Adobe and Modernism in Ílhavo, Portugal

Abstract

The debate on the rehabilitation of adobe buildings and their heritage value leads to the inadequacies that still exist in the architectural characterization and conservation status of these buildings, especially outside large urban centers. This study seeks to contribute to this debate by focusing on adobe construction techniques in Ílhavo, Portugal, during the transition phase between vernacular and the architecture of the Modern Movement. The study also seeks to contribute to developing knowledge of the evolutionary process of adobe construction, associated with the appropriation and application of the new architectural language, by focusing on the period from the 1940s to the 1960s. Identified are the major defects associated with changes in construction methods. The data are intended to support the protection of this heritage. In Portugal, increasing importance is currently attributed to modernist buildings because they are focal points for the characterization of the country’s architectural history. The preservation efforts for these buildings have encountered obstacles in terms of maintaining identity, given the recent interventions that were implemented. This conflict is seen, in a comprehensive manner, in the vernacular construction of adobe. However, knowledge of historical and cultural issues could even support projects in the tourism industry by valuing and preserving heritage.