|
It could be just one more university in the Arab world. As in various educational institutions in the region, students there study sociology, psychology and information technology.
But after a quick glance at Mentouri Constantine University you can see that something is different. The shapes of the buildings under which the Algerians study are not conventional. The hand of the main Brazilian architect, Oscar Niemeyer, has been there. He is considered one of the most influential names in modern architecture. Niemeyer was born in Rio de Janiero, southeastern Brazil. In Brazil his image is rapidly associated to the federal capital. Niemeyer designed the main buildings in Brazilian capital Brasília, among them Alvorada Palace, the official residence of the president of the Republic, and Planalto Palace, the offices of the federal government. But Niemeyer is not just a Brazilian figure. His pencil has crossed the Atlantic Ocean to design constructions for the French, Italians and Arabs. Algeria is a country to which Niemeyer travelled various times at the end of the 1960's, when he was prohibited from working in Brazil due to his participation in the Communist Party. He lived in Europe, in Italy and France. At the time Brazil was living a military dictatorship, which ended in 1985. In Algeria, Niemeyer designed Mentouri Constantine University, in 1969, at the invitation of then president Houari Boumedienne. Niemeyer, a defender of social topics, is proud of the work. The institution was designed to provide the integration of the various courses taught. "I like Constantine University because it is different from all others in terms of functional and pedagogical aspects," he said in an e-mail interview. According to information on the architect's Internet site, the project was in the line with a proposal by anthropologist Darcy Ribeiro, who wished for "a freer university, more flexible, which could better accompany the tendencies of students." Niemeyer also designed Algiers Mosque. "I designed a mosque over the sea, to the surprise of all, connected to the shore by a bridge that surrounds the mosque and protects it from the inconveniences of the waves. With this solution, I proposed the introduction into Algeria of a different and more daring architecture. Boumedienne himself showed his satisfaction: 'It is a revolutionary mosque!', to which I quickly answered, 'The revolution must never stop', this made him smile," explains Niemeyer on his site. The project, however, never came off paper. Niemeyer also designed the Civic Center in Algiers for the Algerians, in 1968. "The Civic Centre of Algiers is the great monument that Boumedienne dreamt of. The Ministry, the Government Palace, the offices of the Party and the Congress," explained the architect. Boumedienne governed the country between 1965 and 1978 and adopted pro-soviet foreign policy, giving out land and nationalizing oil companies. The Civic Centre project, however, was not executed. Niemeyer also designed constructions for other Arab countries, like the Emirates and Lebanon, but Algeria is the country in the region with which he is most familiar. At the age of 98 and working actively on his projects, Niemeyer has a list of Arab personalities who are friends, among them the current country president, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who met in Algiers, last week, with the Brazilian president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Below are the main stretches of the interview: What are the constructions you designed in Algeria? Oscar Niemeyer - Only (Mentouri) Constantine University. What is the design of the university like? What did you base it on? The idea was, instead of building a building for each college, to erect just two buildings - one for classrooms and the other for science laboratories. How did the possibility of designing the building arise? It was president Boumedienne who convinced me. You have already stated that the university is one of your favorite. Why? I like Constantine University because it is different from all others regarding the functional and pedagogical aspect. What memories do you have of Algeria? I liked Algeria and the Algerian people very much. I liked the happy way they spoke about their victory over France (Algeria became independent from France, of which it was a colony, in 1962). You designed your projects in Algeria at a time in which you could not work in Brazil due to your participation in the Communist Party. How did the Algerians look at that? In France, Italy and Algeria I only found solidarity and good acceptance. The Algerians understood the position of Brazilian exiles and received us warmly. You also designed, in 1962, the international fairground in Lebanon. How was this project? Yes. I hated the kind of international fairground I saw in the United States, with various pavilions spread around the city. I designed a building that was 600 meters long in which each pavilion was included. It was a monumental construction; the whole structural part was built. I have just read in French newspaper Le Monde that a protest is being made against the current abandonment of the project. They believe that this project is a masterpiece of modern architecture. And in 1981 did you work on a project for urbanisation of an island in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates? The island was turned to leisure and tourism. It was a project that I worked on with great energy but which, unfortunately, did not come off paper. How do you see the initiative by president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of bringing Brazil closer to the Arab world? I consider it very fair. Are there influences of Arab cultural elements or of Arab culture in your works? Of course. Current architecture reveals more antique influences; all you have to do is recall the Parthenon. Do you have any great friend among the personalities of the Arab world? Who, and how did your friendship begin? Some, among them the current Algerian president, Bouteflika, who invited me to design the offices of the Ministry of Justice. Anba - www.anba.com.br
 |
Subscribe to this comment's feed
Brazil received a huge boost in its international image with its selection as the host of the 2016 Olympics, but it was really just the cherry on top of the overall recognition of the country's ascension to the ranks of one of the world's most important countries. Now, as it finally takes its place on the world scene, there has been a great deal of concern about what kind of image Brazil hopes to project, now that the world is really paying attention. 
The only good thing to say about the visit to Brazil of Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, on Monday November 23, is that it was mercifully short and lasted less than 24 hours. Ahmadinejad had his picture taken being hugged by president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva who gave him a warm welcome and said Iran had every right to develop nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. 
The small, coastal town of Condé is located just a twenty minute's drive from João Pessoa, the capital of Paraíba. The Northeast of Brazil has historically been a place of encounter and mixing between peoples. For millenia groups of indigenous people fished, farmed, migrated and sometimes fought along this large, fertile area. 
The Brazilian diplo-MÁ-cia (bad diplomacy) carries on its accelerated course towards the non-acknowledgment of human rights, although sometimes it takes pleasure in saying that it does precisely the opposite. The visit of Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is another example of a diplomatic omission that verges on hypocrisy. 
On July 4, 2006, representatives of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay met in Caracas to sign the protocol for the entrance of Venezuela into the Southern Common Market (Mercosur). After two and a half years, the protocol was approved by the legislative bodies of Argentina and Uruguay, and as of now it may be only days away from being ratified by the continent's economic megalith, Brazil. 
Some sectors of the fight against AIDS have suggested that Thabo Mbeki, the former president of South Africa, committed genocide through his absence from the fight against the illness in his country throughout his two terms. 
One hundred and eleven years after Brazil abolished slavery, the number of workers deprived of their freedom is still huge. They raise cattle, produce charcoal, sugar cane or timber. Some of them, most undocumented Bolivians, work in basements of small apparel factories in São Paulo and other metropolis. 
On November 7, 2009 a few friends and I had an opportunity to take a look inside a Brazilian jail outside the city of Rio de Janeiro. We were able to take some amateur footage of our experience on video (see link below). It's no surprise, of course, that the typical Brazilian jail lacks some of the functionality of those in North America or Europe, but our experience that day was quite shocking. 
Depletion of the Amazon Rainforest is not a new concern facing environmentalists, biologists, ecologists, and a growing number of the Amazonian indigenous peoples. For decades they have feared for the fate of the world's most biologically diverse and species-rich hothouse. 
Geisy Arruda made history this week in Brazil, but for all the wrong reasons. What began as a poorly planned fashion statement has become a worldwide tale. Geisy decided to wear a pink mini-dress to her private college in São Paulo state, and after that, all hell broke loose.