Transformações no Sertão da Ressaca: inventário morfológico da antiga Rua Grande de Vitória da Conquista-BA

Abstract

The Industrial Revolution and new construction technologies have driven the rapid and unregulated growth of cities. In this context, urban planning theories emerged out of the necessity to organize and intervene in the urban environment. In the 20th century, urbanism, aligned with modernization ideals, led to the erasure of historic centers to accommodate the new functional and practical needs of cities. In Brazil, although modernist intellectuals played a key role in creating IPHAN (the National Institute of Historic and Artistic Heritage), a preservationist institution, they also contributed to the abandonment of historic centers in the name of progress. After 87 years of operation, the national preservation institution still faces challenges in managing the country’s cultural heritage, leading contemporary cities to suffer from the loss and degradation of their remaining historical assets. In this context, Vitória da Conquista, a municipality in the south-central region of Bahia, located 515 km from the state capital, has existed for 183 years and, like many cities in the country, witnesses the demolition of its historic heritage to make way for new parking lots or modern building typologies. Thus, it is crucial to document the significant buildings that shape the memory and identity of the local population. Based on this, the present study aims to analyze the transformations in the urban landscape of the former Rua Grande, the historical core of Vitória da Conquista, through a morphological analysis. The specific objectives include examining the impact of modernization on the city’s spatial configuration and documenting its architectural production, identifying both the elements that have remained and those that have been lost over time. The methodological steps adopted in this research include a bibliographic review of topics related to urban heritage, the relationship between memory and the built environment, and the history of Vitória da Conquista; analysis of cartographic and photographic data through the approach of urban morphology; and finally, as a result of this analysis, documentary inventory records of the urban morphology of the former RuaGrande and the architectural typologies significant for the construction of Conquista's memory and identity will be presented.