Modernists and the choices of the past in Southern Brazil

Abstract

This research is intended to contribute to the understanding of the history of Brazilian architectural heritage preservation, from the emergence of public policy to its consolidation at the national level, and, in particular, its influence on Rio Grande do Sul. In addressing cultural heritage in this country, it is necessary to make reference to the work of modernist professionals who constructed the idea of ​​preserving the past with a view to integrating it with the nation's future. Their actions were radical to break academic standards and surpassed contemporary paradigms. The issue investigated is the choice of a particular past history selected by modernists, the choices they made in a region far from the center of the country, the values ​​attributed to architectural assets, the aspects of heritage thereby established and the methods they created to develop their work. Generally, research on the subject is limited to activities in the central region of the Historical and Artistic Heritage National Service (SPHAN), now IPHAN, and ignores the implementation of these policies in different regions of the country. The analysis of the registry processes at the national level, during the institution’s first years of operation, made possible the establishment of a framework that situated the work of SPHAN in Brazil to better understand its activity in the country’s southernmost state.