Urban morphology in the South: spontaneous and induced form

Abstract

The paper is an urban morphology comparative study between four southern cities: São Paulo, Jakarta, Hanoi and Belo Horizonte, aiming to disclose common spatial outcomes of similar development processes, guided by positionality. Urban morphology was the tool used to read the distinct territories and territorial scales, through direct observation enabled by a joint fieldwork between the three researchers involved in the study. Therefore, the current research proposes a direct comparison of these elements, using fragments of four cities of diverse socio – politic and cultural backgrounds, but with similar industrialization and urbanization processes, aiming to reveal similarities between each city and its development; and the consequences of their urbanization process in a local scale.