The Image of the Waterfront in Rio deJaneiro Urbanism and Social Representation of Reality

Globalization incites nations, regions, and cities to compete for investments, consumers, and resources. In aspiring for a new position in the global market, cities utilize new urban practices that lead to the rediscovery and many times to the invention of identities and traditions that became fundamental attributes to attract consumers. Rio deJaneiro, Brazil, also follows this path, and since the turn of the twentieth century, the mythical dimension of the bayfront first and then of the beachfront have been inseparably incorporated to the city's identity and international image. Developmental patterns along the waterfront and the imagery associated with the beaches in Rio de Janeiro reveal that the social construction of reality is marked by a continuous redesign of urban symbols. Although tourism and marketing have always praised the waterfront and the beaches as fundamental to Rio's image, there was never a continuous and comprehensive public planning and management process to over look these areas. Sectoral and embellishment projects happen from time to time, but they result either from political gestures or are remedies for a pressing functional prob lem. The discontinuity in the history of urban interventions along the waterfront is a clear expression of the lack of deserved attention from the city planning apparatus