ARCHITECTURE AS A TOOL FOR STRUGGLE AND VISIBILITY: INTERVIEW WITH PAULO TAVARES

Abstract

Paulo Tavares is an architect, author, and educator. His practice dwells at the frontiers between architecture, visual cultures, and advocacy. Operating through multiple media, Tavares’s projects have been featured in various exhibitions and publications worldwide, including the Oslo Architecture Triennial, Istanbul Design Biennale, São Paulo Art Biennial, and the Venice Architecture Biennale. He is the author of several books questioning the colonial legacies of modernity, including Des-Habitat (K. Verlag, 2019), Lucio Costa era racista? (n-1, 2022), and Derechos No-Humanos (Bartlebooth, 2022). The curatorial project 'Terra', in collaboration with Gabriela de Matos, was awarded the Golden Lion for best national participation at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2023. Tavares’ work was selected by ArchDaily as one of the Best New Practices of 2023. He was co-curator of the 2019 Chicago Architecture Biennial and is part of the Advisory Curatorial Board of Sharjah Biennial 2023. Tavares teaches at Columbia GSAPP and the University of Brasília and leads the spatial advocacy agency Autônoma.