<\/strong> Promontory Architects<\/p>\n
When we visit someone\u2019s home, we inevitably enter the private universe of the person who lives there. We are invited to a certain level of intimacy, interacting with objects that have been touched, pieces of furniture worn by time, memories in the form of portraits inscribed on the walls or on small tables. Whether it is large or small, sumptuous or modest, visiting a \u201chouse\u201d is visiting someone\u2019s life. That is why visits to the palaces of Ajuda, Queluz or Pena, as well as the Patudos house in Alpiar\u00e7a or Sister L\u00facia\u2019s house in Aljustrel are so unforgettable \u2013 it does not depend on the monumentality or artistic quality, but on the soul that guards it.<\/p>\n
The first time I entered Aradas\u2019 house, once the home of a Brazilian who had returned home, I entered through the garden and was greeted by a friendly dog. I walked around the house, leaving the well on my right and an Araucaria tree, half \u201cmutilated\u201d by thunder, on the left. Going around the house, you went through a shed and another annex after a \u201ctrellis\u201d, entering through the back door.<\/p>\n
I entered this house through the intimate side, reserved for those \u201cin the house\u201d. It was also in this way that I entered the life and history of the family of Francisco Castanhas, son of Dr. Hermes Castanhas who had just left us. The things in disarray in their places bore witness to the intimacy of a life that had been interrupted and that Francisco still wanted to show me without shame, because he wanted me to know what was left to know about his father. Already on the outside, I had appreciated the \u201cskin\u201d of a modest building, but with pure forms, and irreproachable symmetry and proportion. But the \u201cskeleton\u201d seduced me with its exaggerated ceiling height, the \u201cimported\u201d wallpapers for the meeting place around the dining table, the bright colours of the carpentry in the style of the period of the prosperous \u201cBrazilian\u201d houses in the Aveiro area \u2013 with the prevalence of some green, green\/blue, yellow and garnet hues \u2013 and the \u201cscaiolas\u201d and stucco \u201ccherished\u201d in small restorations over the course of life, of course, more exuberant on the opposite side of the house, located at the formal entrance and guest rooms.<\/p>\n
It was, however, in the attic, the size of an entire house, that I discovered the collection that had already been shown to me in the catalogue as part of a well-photographed collection, as well as to its collector. The visible pieces were displayed in dusty display cases, all mysterious, many with an immediately painful expression, others as if part of an alphabet to be deciphered. Collections of blunt, incisive, draining, piercing, penetrating, regurgitating, inhaling objects, organized by size, therefore by levels of reach and access to bodies and souls to be helped.<\/p>\n
A certain curiosity, admittedly sadistic, was also associated with a certain aesthetic fascination, whether due to the sequential repetition of objects reminiscent of the absurd arrangements on the archaeology shelves in Cairo, or due to the design of almost sensual instruments that adapt to the anatomy of hidden parts of the human body. None of this would have been this collector\u2019s motivation, certainly. He was interested in the function, the history of the objects and the evolution of therapies, the possibility of storing, relating and displaying the pieces, whose scientific function reveals so much accumulated wisdom and ingenuity. He was certainly driven by a greater sense of responsibility, between preserving pieces he came across, acquiring and valuing them, and the interpretative legacy that they suggest \u2013 basically the love of \u201cknowledge\u201d that never abandons those who dedicate their lives to science.<\/p>\n
Because this collection was recognized as being quite valuable, it was necessary to extend this cycle begun by his father, so Francisco, moving to prolong his life and work as if seeking a final caress, got down to work and invited me to help him.<\/p>\n
The idea of \u200b\u200bthe house is a very strong idea, because the house is the container and content of this museum, that is, Dr. Hermes Castanhas was a local doctor, his private life is confused with his professional activity as in so many other cases of doctors who, even though they were often specialists, became general practitioners for entire families out of necessity, accompanying several generations from birth to death. Therefore, families and domestic environments are the ideal setting to portray the \u201ccaring doctor\u201d, his life, his work and his collection \u2013 all gathered in a place that, being his, was open to the \u201cother\u201d and thus lasting in a house that, now dressed in blue and white, tells us about universal knowledge.<\/p>\n
So, for this reason, we enter his private space, where the atmosphere of his home reveals his presence \u2013 from the gardens to each of the rooms \u2013 the host doctor\u2019s gaze has rested so many times on the same ceilings, doors and walls, which are now painted with the hues that were already there \u2013 now less saturated \u2013 which were used to darken the space, making it more intimate, introspective and appropriate for the thematic modulation of a museum route. Sometimes the colour is used excessively, covering all the walls and ceilings, revealing a contemporary intervention, as well as the marked distinction between the existing openings and the \u201cminimalist\u201d style in which new passages were opened between rooms or the layout of the lighting, wiring and air conditioning infrastructures which, taking advantage of the magnificent ceiling height, are exposed without reservation.<\/p>\n
Finally, the attic, which is the highest place in the house and simultaneously the most hidden and secret, was once the place where the collection was kept. Now it is a space turned towards the future, that future that is bright with hope and that sees in all directions \u2013 that is why, on the time-marked mat floor, the entire wooden structure was painted white, showing the \u201canatomy\u201d or \u201cskeleton\u201d of the house revealed by the light from the four windows facing the cardinal points \u2013 symbolizing the universality of knowledge and the light of scientific revelation that is glimpsed with each discovery.[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text module_class=”back-btn” _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”||0px||false|false” custom_padding=”9px|12px|5px|12px|false|true” link_option_url=”https:\/\/skope.pt\/en\/historical-timeline\/#year-2023″ hover_enabled=”0″ custom_css_main_element=”width: fit-content;||display: inline-block;||margin-right: 10px;” border_radii=”on|10px|10px|10px|10px” border_width_all=”2px” border_color_all=”#80ABCA” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}” content__hover_enabled=”on|hover” content__hover=”
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Pedro Appleton Promontory Architects When we visit someone\u2019s home, we inevitably enter the private universe of the person who lives there. We are invited to a certain level of intimacy, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"Pedro Appleton.\r\n<\/strong> Partner<\/em> do Promont\u00f3rio Arquitetos\r\n\r\nQuando visitamos a Casa de algu\u00e9m, entramos inevitavelmente no universo privado de quem a habita. Somos convidados a um certo n\u00edvel de intimidade, privando com objetos que foram tocados, pe\u00e7as de mobili\u00e1rio gastas pelo tempo, mem\u00f3rias em forma de retratos inscritas nas paredes ou sobre mesinhas. Podendo ser grande ou pequena, faustosa ou modesta, visitar uma \u201ccasa\u201d \u00e9 visitar a vida de algu\u00e9m. Por isso s\u00e3o t\u00e3o inesquec\u00edveis as visitas aos pal\u00e1cios da Ajuda, Queluz ou Pena, como \u00e0 casa dos Patudos em Alpiar\u00e7a ou da irm\u00e3 L\u00facia em Aljustrel \u2013 n\u00e3o depende da monumentalidade ou qualidade art\u00edstica, mas da alma que a guarda.\r\n\r\nA primeira vez que entrei na casa de Aradas, outrora casa de um brasileiro de \u201ctorna viagem\u201d, entrei pelo jardim e fui recebido por uma cadela simp\u00e1tica. Dei a volta \u00e0 casa deixando o po\u00e7o \u00e0 minha direita e uma Arauc\u00e1ria meia \u201cmutilada\u201d por um trov\u00e3o, \u00e0 esquerda. Dando assim a volta \u00e0 casa, atravessava-se um barrac\u00e3o e mais um anexo depois de uma \u201clatada\u201d, entrando pela porta de tr\u00e1s.\r\n\r\nEntrei nesta casa pelo lado \u00edntimo, reservado aos \u201cda casa\u201d. Foi tamb\u00e9m dessa maneira que entrei na vida e na hist\u00f3ria da fam\u00edlia do Francisco Castanhas, filho do Dr. Hermes Castanhas que nos acabava de deixar. As coisas desarrumadas nos seus lugares, testemunhavam a intimidade de uma vida que se interrompeu e que o Francisco me quis ainda mostrar sem pudor, porque queria que conhecesse o que restava para conhecer do seu pai. J\u00e1 na volta exterior, tinha apreciado a \u201cpele\u201d de um edif\u00edcio modesto, mas de formas puras, e irrepreens\u00edveis simetria e propor\u00e7\u00e3o. Mas o \u201cesqueleto\u201d seduziu-me no exagerado p\u00e9-direito, os pap\u00e9is de parede \u201cimportados\u201d para lugar de encontro \u00e0 volta da mesa de jantar, as cores garridas das carpintarias ao gosto da \u00e9poca das prof\u00edcuas casas de \u201cbrasileiro\u201d na zona de Aveiro \u2013 com a preval\u00eancia de algumas matizes verdes, verde\/azuladas, amarelos e grenats \u2013 e as \u201cescaiolas\u201d e estuques \u201cacarinhados\u201d em pequenos restauros ao longo da vida, claro est\u00e1, mais exuberantes no lado contr\u00e1rio da casa, disposto \u00e0 entrada formal e salas para visitas.\r\n\r\nFoi, por\u00e9m, no s\u00f3t\u00e3o, do tamanho de uma casa inteira, que conheci a cole\u00e7\u00e3o que j\u00e1 me tinha sido mostrada no cat\u00e1logo de parte de um esp\u00f3lio bem fotografado, assim como ao seu colecionador. As pe\u00e7as vis\u00edveis dispunham-se em vitrinas empoeiradas, todas misteriosas, muitas de express\u00e3o imediatamente dolorosa, outras como que fazendo parte de um alfabeto por decifrar. Cole\u00e7\u00f5es de objetos contundentes, incisivos, drenantes, perfurantes, penetrantes, regurgitantes, inalantes, organizados por tamanhos, portanto por n\u00edveis de alcance e acesso a corpos e almas por socorrer.\r\n\r\nA uma certa curiosidade, confessadamente s\u00e1dica, associou-se-me tamb\u00e9m um certo deslumbre est\u00e9tico, quer pela repeti\u00e7\u00e3o sequencial de objetos a lembrar as absurdas disposi\u00e7\u00f5es nas estantes de arqueologia no Cairo, quer pelo desenho de instrumentos quase sensuais que se adaptam \u00e0 anatomia de partes escondidas do corpo humano. Nada disto ter\u00e1 sido a motiva\u00e7\u00e3o deste colecionador, certamente. Interessou-lhe a fun\u00e7\u00e3o, a hist\u00f3ria dos objetos e da evolu\u00e7\u00e3o das terap\u00eauticas, a possibilidade de guardar, relacionar e mostrar as pe\u00e7as, cuja fun\u00e7\u00e3o cient\u00edfica \u00e9 reveladora de tanta sabedoria e engenho acumulados. Moveu-o certamente um sentido de responsabilidade maior, entre preservar pe\u00e7as com as quais se cruzou, adquirindo-as e estimando-as, e o legado interpretativo que estas sugerem \u2013 no fundo o amor ao \u201cconhecimento\u201d que nunca abandona aquele que entrega a sua\r\nvida \u00e0 ci\u00eancia.\r\n\r\nPorque se reconhecia como bastante estim\u00e1vel esta cole\u00e7\u00e3o, havia que prolongar este ciclo come\u00e7ado pelo pai, assim o Francisco, movendo-se por lhe prolongar a vida e obra como que \u00e0 procura de um \u00faltimo afago, deitou m\u00e3os \u00e0 obra, e convidou-me a ajud\u00e1-lo.\r\n\r\nA Ideia da Casa \u00e9 uma ideia muito forte, porque a casa \u00e9 contentor e conte\u00fado deste museu, ou seja, o Dr. Hermes Castanhas foi um m\u00e9dico de proximidade, a sua vida privada confunde-se com a sua atividade profissional como em tantos outros casos de m\u00e9dicos que, at\u00e9 tantas vezes especialistas, tornavam-se pela necessidade m\u00e9dicos generalistas de fam\u00edlias inteiras, acompanhando v\u00e1rias gera\u00e7\u00f5es do nascimento \u00e0 morte. Por isso, fam\u00edlias e ambientes dom\u00e9sticos s\u00e3o o cen\u00e1rio ideal para retratar o \u201cm\u00e9dico cuidador\u201d, a sua vida, a sua obra e a sua cole\u00e7\u00e3o \u2013 tudo congregado num lugar que, sendo o seu, era aberto ao \u201coutro\u201d e assim perdurando\r\nnuma casa que, agora vestida de azul e branco, nos fala sobre um saber universal.\r\n\r\nEnt\u00e3o por isso, entramos no seu espa\u00e7o privado, onde a atmosfera da sua casa denuncia a sua presen\u00e7a \u2013 dos jardins a cada uma das divis\u00f5es \u2013 o olhar do m\u00e9dico anfitri\u00e3o repousou tantas vezes sobre os mesmos tetos, as portas e as paredes, que agora se v\u00eam pintadas das matizes que j\u00e1 l\u00e1 estavam \u2013 agora menos saturadas \u2013 que foram usadas para escurecer o espa\u00e7o, tornando-o mais intimista, introspetivo e apropriado \u00e0 modula\u00e7\u00e3o tem\u00e1tica de um percurso museol\u00f3gico. Por vezes a cor \u00e9 usada com exagero, cobrindo todas as paredes e tetos, denunciando uma interven\u00e7\u00e3o contempor\u00e2nea, assim como a marcada distin\u00e7\u00e3o entre os v\u00e3os existentes e o estilo \u201cminimalista\u201d em que foram abertas novas passagens entre divis\u00f5es ou a disposi\u00e7\u00e3o das infraestruturas de ilumina\u00e7\u00e3o, cablagem e ar condicionado que, aproveitando o magn\u00edfico p\u00e9-direito, se exp\u00f5em sem reservas.\r\n\r\nPor fim o s\u00f3t\u00e3o, que \u00e9 o lugar mais alto da casa e simultaneamente o mais escondido e secreto, foi em tempos o lugar onde se guardou a cole\u00e7\u00e3o. \u00c9 agora um espa\u00e7o voltado para o futuro, aquele futuro que \u00e9 luminoso de esperan\u00e7a e que v\u00ea em todas as dire\u00e7\u00f5es \u2013 por isso sobre o soalho de esteira marcado pelo tempo, toda a estrutura de madeira foi pintada de branco, mostrando a \u201canatomia\u201d ou o \u201cesqueleto\u201d da casa revelado pela luz das quatro janelas viradas aos pontos cardeais \u2013 simbolizando a universalidade do conhecimento e a luz da revela\u00e7\u00e3o cient\u00edfica que se perspetiva a cada descoberta.","_et_gb_content_width":"","_price":"","_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"0","_ticket_start_date":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":false,"_tribe_ticket_use_global_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_global_stock_level":"","_global_stock_mode":"","_global_stock_cap":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_going_count":"","_tribe_ticket_not_going_count":"","_tribe_tickets_list":"[]","_tribe_ticket_has_attendee_info_fields":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[50],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6021","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-historical-timeline"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/skope.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6021","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/skope.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/skope.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skope.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skope.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6021"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/skope.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6021\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6097,"href":"https:\/\/skope.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6021\/revisions\/6097"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/skope.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6021"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skope.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6021"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skope.pt\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6021"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}