My first CASACOR in the year it all began

2025 was a year of many beginnings for me.

It was the year I started my architecture and urban planning degree.

And also the year I went to CASACOR Salvador for the first time.

The visit took place at the beginning of the second semester, following an invitation from Professor Vera Sehbe, from the Means of Representation course. We went as a group with some classmates.

And even though I've arrived here a little late to record this experience, a consequence of an intense semester full of activities, I felt it deserved to be written about calmly now, at the end of the year. Because it was an experience that truly stayed with me.

A look that had already been there before.

I've always had an affinity for interior design. Even before college, I already had this interest in space, in atmospheres, in the sensations that an environment can evoke.

But being at CASACOR was different. It was seeing it materialized at the highest level of detail.

What struck me most was realizing how the professionals designed the environment from the perspective of those who would inhabit it. Nothing seemed random. Everything followed a very clear concept.

Each space had its own atmosphere. And this was noticeable right from the entrance.

Atmospheres that are felt before they are understood

Colors, sounds, lighting, aromas, music.

More rounded shapes in some environments, more pointed ones in others.

Mirrors, textures, surfaces, materials.

It was impossible to enter a space and not immediately feel something different.

And that deeply fascinated me. Because it became very clear there that interior design isn't just about aesthetics, it's a complete sensory experience.

I even left some of the spaces mentally exhausted. Not from physical fatigue, but from the sheer amount of stimuli, details, and information to observe.

It was a lot to absorb. And that, curiously, was also beautiful to realize.

Two moments that stayed with me

Some spaces affected me more intensely.

One of them was a room in the so-called Lounge of Renunciation, by Hugo Ribeiro. A dramatic space with purple walls, corn kernels on the floor, strong images, and a prominent illuminated cross. The feeling upon entering was heavy. Almost immediate.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/b2d88a_5f8fbcccda634775adcd71913e74888c/480p/mp4/file.mp4

There, it became very clear how colors, images, and symbols construct instant sensations. Even before any explanation, the body already understood that the environment spoke of pain, guilt, and suffering.

Seeing this applied so consciously was a practical lesson.

Another moment that deeply marked me was the "Living Praiano dos Sonhos" (Dream Beach Living Room) environment by Nonato Arquitetura.

With a light, almost beachy aesthetic. Sand tones, a light atmosphere.

The high ceiling highlighted a single work of art, threads of fabric in shades of pink and red, like a waterfall.

At first glance, tranquility.

Then, the impact.

Upon understanding the concept, everything changed. The beach referenced the voyages of slave ships. The artwork alluded to wet nurses, enslaved women who breastfed the children of plantation owners and, when trying to feed their own children, no longer had milk, only blood.

It was a silent shock.

There, I realized something very powerful: art doesn't need to shout to be a scream.

It can be silent and still be extremely potent.

That was the phrase that formed in my head at that moment: "Art can be a silent scream."

You enter, you feel something, even without understanding. And when you understand, the impact deepens.

A space that carries memory

Another point that made this edition even more special was the location. For the first time, CASACOR took place in this specific space, a former convent, steeped in history, where generations of nuns and religious students passed through.

Much of the original structure was preserved. And the project skillfully blended the old with the new in a very sensitive way. The spaces engaged in a dialogue with the existing architecture, with the memory of the place, and with different eras of Brazil.

It wasn't just an interior design exhibition. It was a conversation between times.

A shared feeling

Amidst all of this, a colleague commented something that stuck with me: "It's such a beautiful world... will I ever be able to do something like that?"

And, to be very honest, I felt that way too.

Even though I'm confident that these skills are built over time, there's still that mix of admiration and respect. A look that says: there's a lot of thought here. A lot of study. A lot of process.

And perhaps that's what makes it all so fascinating.

A required registration

This post is, above all, a record.

Of a first encounter.

Of genuine enchantment.

Of an experience that helped broaden my perspective right at the beginning of my training.

CASACOR 2025 was more than just a visit.

It was a confirmation that space has power.

That environments speak.

That well-constructed concepts resonate with the body even before being explained.

And, for those who are starting out, that's an immense gift.