Resisting an unfavorable context and confronting its limitations, Grupo Finca emerges, a collective initiative that explores the practice of architecture from an artistic and pedagogical aspect in Havana, Cuba. Given the complexity of the country’s political and social situation, informal architecture is common: low resources, difficulty in obtaining materials, high costs, and a lack of skilled labor, among other challenges, are some of the obstacles facing independent architectural professionals. In addition to the lack of a regulatory legal framework that would allow them to work formally in the labor market or obtain materials and supplies, the construction of contemporary architecture in Cuba is decentralized to independent processes that can somehow overcome these barriers.
In addition, the most vulnerable communities are particularly affected, as, in the absence of effective public policy, they see their neighborhoods and gathering spaces disappear. In this context, Grupo Finca presents a powerful reflection on public space, where they have the opportunity and the tools, independently, to change it and return quality spaces to the communities. The group proposes an activity model based on the freedom to work without commissions or specific clients.
As a team, we discovered that there was a legal loophole when we operated without commissions and in the informality of our city. We recognize the value of the intuitive city, the city that grows organically from the need for shelter, and we place ourselves in a critical position in response to government management. We enter public space as active citizens, demanding a political right to renew our environment. Here, connected to transformation, the classroom takes shape. In the changing setting, another transformation immediately emerges: the change of individuals. Then, an educational process is released, directed towards a critical spatial vision of pedagogy.
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In an abandoned urban void, previously used as a dump in the community of Los Pocitos, is Inua, a swing installation that also serves as an extension of a local school classroom. The site already had almost all the material needed to create it; it was just the design and coordination. The building process was a collective process, with the community involved who embraced the project as their own from the start.
The realization process was an expression of freedom and the faces were hopeful; a hope that somehow inspired the public’s perception of their relationship with space. The dump seemed to be an immutable truth, and nothing could be further from that. He disappeared as a force of change emerged. Around eleven at night, figures are projected from a rooftop. Voices, a violin, and a drum could be heard; joy, too, to hear: Inua being born.
The Inua Project shows that, despite constraints, urban spaces can be transformed through community collaboration and creativity. This approach not only addresses the immediate needs but also establishes a model for architectural intervention in challenging contexts, showing that resilience and innovation can create a lasting positive impact on communities.
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