From Reading to Design of the “<i>[entra]mar</i>”: The Role of Urban Morphology in Architectural Pedagogy and Design

Abstract

This article presents the pedagogical process of reading and designing in the design studio course in the first semester of the fourth year in Architecture and Urbanism (2020–2021) held at the Lisbon School of Architecture of the Universidade de Lisboa. The research by design results are inscribed in the Embryo Project “[entra]mar Sea Intertwined City. Interpretation and Design of Portuguese Seashore Streets Vulnerable to Sea Level Rise”, funded by the FCT exploratory projects through CIAUD—Research Center in Architecture, Urbanism and Design at the Lisbon School of Architecture, Universidade de Lisboa (Portugal). The aim of this article is to demonstrate the usefulness of urban morphology in the reading and design process of an urban seafront vulnerable to extreme weather events. The approach to the “Sesimbra [entra]mar” in a pedagogical context confirms morphological interpretation as a key instrument for the formation of students and is consequently valuable for the practice of architecture and urbanism.

Keywords

• urban morphology
• elementary decomposition
• emotional reconstruction
• material urbanity
• architectural pedagogy
• public space