Beira, a modernist landscape in Tropical Africa

Abstract Beira is a complex and unique case study regarding the implementation of modernist ideas in tropical countries. The city became prosperous due to the high yields provided by its rail and port interface connecting to Rhodesia/Zimbabwe; it attracted wealth, ambitious, talented young Portuguese architects and civil engineers that built a paradoxical metropolis, filled with iconic modernist buildings, complex and unorthodox technical solutions that filled an unique urban plan in the Portuguese colonial Africa. This article discusses the city expansion process based on a modernist matrix, deeply influenced by Brazilian architectural and urban imaginary, emphasizing the application of modernist influence in the city's expansion logic as well as technical and political options. It also discusses the importance of the exchange of ideas; and urban and architectural models among Portuguese architects and civil engineers based in Mozambique. The authors methodologically conducted an established recognition fieldwork of the city's matrix and identified the modernist architectural legacy of Brazilian influence by selecting the most emblematic examples among the buildings.

摘要：贝拉（Beira）是热带地区践行现代主义理念的复杂且独具特色的案例研究。这座城市因连通罗得西亚/津巴布韦的铁路与港口联运枢纽带来的丰厚收益而得以繁荣，吸引了怀抱远大抱负、才华横溢的年轻葡萄牙建筑师与土木工程师，共同打造出一座充满悖论的大都市：城内遍布标志性现代主义建筑，辅以复杂且非传统的技术方案，构筑起葡萄牙殖民非洲时期独一无二的城市规划格局。本文以基于现代主义框架的城市扩张进程为核心讨论对象，该进程深受巴西建筑与城市意象的影响，重点阐释现代主义理念在城市扩张逻辑、技术选择与政治抉择中的应用。同时，本文还探讨了思想交流的重要性，以及驻莫桑比克的葡萄牙建筑师与土木工程师之间开展的城市与建筑模型互鉴活动。在研究方法层面，作者团队针对城市基底开展了标准化的遗存识别实地调研，并通过遴选建筑中的标志性范例，甄别出受巴西影响的现代主义建筑遗产。