The volume is the result of the 4th Meeting on Cities, Architecture and Archives in the Ibero-American Context, held in 2022, also at Casa da Arquitectura, jointly organised with CIDEHUS – University of Évora and DINÂMIA’CET-Iscte. The book delves deeper into the relationship between architecture, archives and culture, exploring the role of documentation and archival processes in preserving memory and producing knowledge.

Among the texts included in the publication, the following stand out “Around Architecture: Television, archives and architectural culture”, by Alexandra Areia, which revisits television programmes by Portuguese architects such as Nuno Portas, Manuel Graça Dias and José Mateus; ‘Arquivo em movimento’ (Archive in motion), by Joaquim Moreno, which analyses the potential of the media in activating the archive; and ‘Nachleben: Rainer Maria Rilke y la paradoja literaria de un archivo discontinuo’ (Nachleben: Rainer Maria Rilke and the literary paradox of a discontinuous archive), by Carolina B. Garcia-Estévez, a reflection on the legacy of the Austrian poet.

From Brazil come contributions by Rodrigo Cristiano Queiroz, with “The furniture of Gregori Warchavchik in the collection of the Museum of Contemporary Art of the University of São Paulo”, and Monica Frandi Ferreira, with “The architecture revealed in archival documents – The technical treatment of the construction processes of private works in Rio Claro”, highlighting the work carried out in public archives to ensure access to architectural information.

From Portugal, Maria João Pires de Lima revisits the SAAL Norte Archive, highlighting its pioneering role in preserving the housing memory of the post-25 April period, while Hélia Silva and Tiago Borges Lourenço analyse the specifications as sources for the study of Lisbon architecture that disappeared between 1900 and 1920.

The project, which since its inception has established itself as a meeting place for architects, archivists and researchers, has consolidated its position as a forum for Ibero-American reflection and sharing.

At the book launch, coordinators Paulo Batista and Paulo Tormenta Pinto, accompanied by José Fonseca, Director of the Archive and Library Department at Casa da Arquitectura, highlighted the collective nature of the work and the importance of ensuring the preservation and dissemination of architectural archives. "This publication is the result of a dialogue that crosses disciplinary and geographical boundaries. Archives are living spaces, fundamental to understanding and building collective memory," said the scientific editors.