▷ Architect Siza Vieira

Born in 1933 and born in Matosinhos, Siza Vieira studied between 1949 and 1955 at the Escola Superior de Belas-Artes do Porto, where he was also a professor from 1966 to 1969.

Siza Vieira marks the history of Portuguese and international architecture, influencing several generations of architects.

The most emblematic national works are, for example, the tidal pools of Leça da Palmeira.the Serralves Museum, the Marco de Canaveses Church or, internationally, the Iberê Camargo Foundation Museum, in Porto Alegre, Brazil.

Won national and international awards, decorations:

1981 – Prize of the International Association of Art Critics/Secretary of State for Culture AICA/SEC – Architecture;
1988 – Gold Medal from the College of Architects of Madrid;
1988 – Mies van der Rohe Contemporary Architecture Prize;
1992 – Pritzker Prize, from the Hyatt Foundation, for the renovation project of the Chiado district, in Lisbon;
1993 – National Architecture Prize;
1996 – Secil Prize;
1998 – Alvar Aalto Medal;
1998 – Prince of Wales Prize from Harvard University;
2000 – Secil Prize;
2001 – Wolf Arts Prize (2001);
2002 – Golden Lion for best project Venice Architecture Biennale;
2005 – Grand Prix Special for Urban Planning of France;
2006 – Secil Prize;
2008 – Royal Gold Medal for Architectureof the Royal Institute of British Architects;
2009 – Gold medal 2009, from the Royal Institute of British Architects;
2010 – Luso-Spanish Art and Culture Prize
2012 – Golden Lion for Lifetime AchievementVenice Architecture Biennale;
2015 – “Life and work prices” of Portuguese Society of Authors
2019 – Spanish National Architecture Prize
Decorations
2019 – Spanish National Architecture Prize
Grand Officer of Ancient, very noble and enlightened military order of Sant’Iago da Espada, of scientific, literary and artistic merit of Portugal (June 10, 1992)
Grand Cross of Order of Infante D. Henrique of Portugal (July 9, 1999)
Grand Cross of Order of Public Instruction of Portugal (April 6, 2017)
Honorary doctorate
1992 — Polytechnic University of Valencia (Spain)[11]
1993 — Federal Polytechnic School of Lausanne (Suíça)[12]
1995
1997 — University of Coimbra (Portugal)[15]
1999 — Lusíada University of Porto (Portugal)[15]
2000 — Federal University of Paraíba (Brazil)[16]
2004 — University of Naples Federico II (Nápoles, Italy)[17]
2005 — Ion Mincu University of Architecture and Urban Planning (Bucharest, Romania)[17]
2007 — University of Pavia (Pavia, Italy)[18]
2008 — University of Palermo (Buenos Aires, Argentina)[19]
2010 — Technical University of Lisbon (Portugal)[20]
2011
2013 — Polytechnic School of Milan (Milan, Italy)[23]
2014 — University of Granada (Spain)[24]
2015 — University of Évora (Portugal)[25]
Keys to the city
Porto — Keys to the city of Porto, handed over on February 10, 2005 by the then President of the Chamber, Rui Rio[26]
Honorary citizen
2007 — Honorary citizen of the city of Matosinhos[13]
Medal of Honor 2007 — Awarded by the Matosinhos Town Hall[13]

Tidal basin – Leça da Palmeira – 1966

In his youth he had a special passion for sculpture, which influenced his career as an architect and which also gives unique character to his architectural works.
One of the great references in his work was the architect Alvar Aalto, a big name in the modern movement.

In their works, a sensitivity to traditional building techniques and the spirit of the place in which they are located is evident.

“The relationship between nature and construction is decisive in architecture. This relationship, a permanent characteristic of any project, is for me a species and an obsession; it has always been decisive throughout history and, despite this, is today tending towards progressive extinction.” Álvaro Siza.

Words can attempt to describe his work, but you have to navigate the spaces, and the experience allows you to truly understand his architecture.

Below you will find a list of the most inspiring works of Álvaro Siza, from the most recent to the oldest and best known, illustrated by the photographs of Fernando Guerra.