The old Sao Paulo is surrounded. The ‘vila’ houses are still evident in side-streets, dwarfed by the towers of offices and apartments. They command a premium price, although fears about their security also feature.
On the busy thoroughfare of Avenida Faria Lima, office blocks jostle with shopping centres. Begun in the late 1960s, Faria Lima was built at the expense of older residential districts (even more so than Avenida Paulista in the CBD). It is a showcase of Brasilian architecture of the era.
The Brasilian habit of vertical gardening softens the occasional outline …
… though other ways to disguise the ferro-concrete box include tile work …
… concrete mouldings …
… coloured window film …
… or perhaps something unintentional. Landlords may stop their tenants from installing outside air conditioning units.
There’s an occasional homage to early US skyscrapers …
… but only the sleekest, chic-est towers depart from the plain rectangular. (More on Ruy Ohtake at http://brasilart.org/2012/07/19/trophy-towers/)
The tower blocks advance steadily on low-rise housing.
As night falls, darkness and lighting soften their outlines.
The lights of passing cars, aeroplanes and helicopters animate the scene.
The hum and roar of traffic plays a low continuo for the city, never completely asleep.