ABSTRACT
This paper tries to demonstrate how plastic and expressive value can be achieved in the construction of Latin America social architecture despite the use of low-cost materials and, in some cases, the employment of unskilled local labour.
Through the analysis of some South American architectural experiences of modern and contemporary architects, we tried to highlight those fragments of expression that have characterised the buildings: the materiality of the wall surfaces, the formal aspects and aesthetic approach.
The paper highlights the unique character of the building structure through the rough and irregular surfaces of the popular housing designed by architect Lina Bo Bardi, and the formal and aesthetic approach of architects Richard Neutra and Affonso Eduardo Reidy are presented through collective buildings, for instance, schools, health centres and theatres.
Then, the schools in Brazil and the memorial sites in Colombia represent some examples of contemporary experiences that demonstrate how, even today, a social formality in architecture can be achieved with the use of local materials and limited resources.
Comparison of local practices in selected developing countries could represent an opportunity of rethinking both the aesthetical and the constructive approach of conceiving the structure of space, to provide guidelines for experimental projects in those countries, particularly for the practitioners involved in these contexts, which would possibly benefit from the outcome of this study.
