Belém : monumental space in Lisbon case studies of the continuity and the ephemeral in architecture

Architecture is a narrative of places and the settlement of knowledge and human motivation. The built environment offers the space for that representation in each monumental, scenographic or pragmatic singularity. Focussing on the site of the Exhibition of the Portuguese World 1940, in the monumental place of Belem the thesis will analyse one Monument, one Ephemeral museum and a pragmatic building, a restaurant. The Monument to' Prince Henry the Navigator was resolved by Cottinelli Telmo's design for the ephemeral Monument to the Discoveries. Rebuilt in 1960, for the commemoration of the 5th Centennial of Prince Henry's death, it became an "Icon" of the city of Lisbon. The continuity of a set of ephemeral pavilions for the centennials exhibitions has materialized as the Museum of Popular Art, while the water mirror restaurant has survived despite numerous transformations. Public spaces provide for the synthesis between meanings and values that determine, the continuity of the built heritage. Between architectonic theory and practice, concepts and urban reality, the knowledge spectrum is huge. The ephemeral context of the exhibition allowed for creativity in the way Man related himself to the World through architectural representation.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo