Residência de Estudantes Khovo Lar

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Khovo Lar student residence, built 1966–73

Residência de Estudantes Khovo Lar (often just "Khovo Lar") is the name of a student residence of the Swiss Mission of the Presbyterian Church in Mozambique . The dormitory was designed by the Portuguese architect Pancho Guedes in 1966 and opened in 1973. It is located in today's Rua Henri Junod in the Central district of the Mozambican capital Maputo .

history

During his creative period in the Portuguese colony, Pancho Guedes designed mainly buildings for private clients. In addition to many single-family houses for the colonial elite, Guedes also designed schools and churches, especially for the Swiss mission of the Presbyterian Church and other social organizations. As early as 1964, the Swiss mission commissioned him to build a small elementary school in Antioquia in the Magude district (Maputo province). In 1966, the order to build a student residence in the center of the capital Lourenço Marques (Maputo) followed.

The student residence designed by Guedes is part of a larger complex of the Presbyterian Church, which includes a church and a small hospital. The dormitory opened in 1973 after seven years of construction.

construction

The structure is divided into two symmetrical wings. Here is the entrance to the left wing for male students.

The three-story building covers a total area of ​​55 × 40 meters and is located in a small side street of today's Avenida Eduardo Mondlane (before 1975 Avenida Pinheiro Chagas ) not far from the city ​​hall . Guedes gave the building an orientation from northwest to southeast and thus followed the classic, planned orientations of the Plano Aguiar . Inside, the building is divided into two functional parts: the bedrooms, washrooms and study rooms are on the second and third floors and are mainly oriented towards the street. In the rear, connected, flat part of the building is the large dining room and the connected kitchen.

The main part of the building is symmetrically divided into two halves, with one wing each intended for students of one gender. Each wing has a separate entrance, each marked with “masculino” (male) and “feminino” (female). The only common rooms in the main part are the study rooms and a common, central lounge area on the ground floor of the building. The washrooms are on the top floor. The symmetry of the building emphasizes the modular and thus simplistic character of the building, which is typical of Pancho Guedes' buildings.

The facade of the building is mainly characterized by the change between the different balconies. The dormitories have large balconies which are closed by shutters with blinds ("Venetian blinds"). There are a total of eight small, walk-in balconies above the entrances, the arrangement of which gives shade to the other balconies. There are also balconies at the rear of the building. Since there is relatively little solar radiation there, they have no shutters.

On the roof of the building there are three narrow, high chimneys above the two entrances to the building wings.

style

There are four small balconies above the two entrances.

Pancho Guedes has assigned the Khovo Lar student residence hall to book 14 “Learning machines” ( Máquinas para aprender ) in his own description of the work . In addition to the student residence , these include the Waterford School (1962–72) in Swaziland, the Convento São José (1966–68) in Maputo, the Escola Agrícola de Chicumbane (1965), the Colégio Nossa Senhora de Conceição (1969–71) , the Escola Técnica dos Caminhos-de-ferro (1972-74) and the Escola de Correios (1973-74) in Inhambane .

Overall, the Khovo Lar student dormitory is characterized above all by its functional, clear construction - and thus represents a clear contrast to the other, sometimes rather playful buildings by the architect Guedes. The six, narrow chimneys of the building emphasize this character and give it the appearance of a "learning factory", based on the strong Calvinist loans of the Presbyterian Church . Miguel Santiago also writes that the social buildings by Guedes - like this student residence - should be part of a "new architecture" that should stand for a renewal of society and should convey dreams, wishes, hopes and the desire for a new ideal.

The wide balconies and the chimneys together give the house a very horizontal, wide character; the house thus dominates the small side street.

Changes

Apart from small changes - in particular the use of the space directly under the roof of the house - the house still serves as the church's student residence. The media report that the house is not in good condition and has not been upgraded since 1982. The responsible ministry of culture would transfer too little money.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g Ana Tostões (Ed.): Arquitetura Moderna em África: Angola e Moçambique . 1st edition. Caleidoscópio, Lisbon 2014, ISBN 978-989-658-240-1 , p. 356 ff .
  2. ↑ a b Miguel Santiago Fernandes: Pancho Guedes - Metamorfoses Espaciais . Colecção Arquitectura. Caleidoscópio, Casal de Cambra 2007, ISBN 989-8010-71-1 , p. 70 ff .
  3. ↑ Fernando Gil: Lar Internato da "Maxaquene-Khovo" - Ministério da Educação e Cultura not cuida dos tutelados. In: Canal de Moçambique / Macua Blogs. May 2, 2006, accessed June 11, 2016 (Portuguese).

Coordinates: 25 ° 57 ′ 56.9 ″  S , 32 ° 34 ′ 38.9 ″  E