Mocão
Montes Claros, MG, Brazil 2001The Montes Claros Stadium, nicknamed “Mocão,” was planned as the first stage of a more ambitious complex: the complete “Olympic Village,” which would also include a multifunctional indoor gymnasium, several outdoor multi-sport courts, and a large support building. Taking advantage of the slopes and the plateau of an existing excavation site, the original topography was reconfigured through cut and fill compensations with the aim of creating a new profile that directly supports the 20,000 concrete grandstand seats, minimizing the cost of traditional grandstand structuring. The stadium field is defined based on this existing excavation, at a lower level than the surrounding terrain. The volume of soil obtained by widening this plateau was relocated to form the embankments beneath the grandstands—spaces that are also utilized in specific sections to house the program: bars, restrooms, ticket offices, medical station, locker rooms, administrative areas, police post, etc., which are the only structured areas. The gentle (6%) yet nearly constant slope of the terrain toward the south determined an elliptical-base cone diagonally sectioned according to a plane in that same direction, with the goal of keeping the height of the embankments constant along its perimeter, externally adapting to the natural terrain through variable inclinations.
This large, “tilted,” asymmetrical geometric form follows the existing inclination of the natural terrain, minimizing the impact of the construction on the landscape. The exterior floor finish is the same as that of the embankments, reinforcing the intention of shaping the building as a kind of “artificial landscape,” rather than an isolated object. Located in a predominantly residential but still developing peripheral area, the vocation of the Olympic Village complex, with its austere monumentality, is certainly to stimulate and establish new parameters for the occupation of the urban landscape in its surroundings.
Project: Mocão – Montes Claros Stadium
Location: Montes Claros, MG
Year: 2001
Area: 45.000 m²
Authors: Bruno Campos, Marcelo Fontes
Complementary Projects:
Concrete structures and foundations: Hélio Chumbinho (Misa Engenharia)
Hydrosanitary and Electrical Installations and Structured Wiring: Elizabeth R. Araújo (Engeth)
Thermoacoustics and Sound: Prof. Pérides Silva (Protherm)
External and Field Lighting Technician: Emerson Cardoso e Sandro dos Santos (Tecnowatt)
Fire prevention and combat: Cap. Geraldo Félix de Moura (Segurança Engineering)
Protection System Against Atmosferic Discharge: Normando V. Borges Alves (Termotécnica)
Consultants:
Architectural Program: Fernando Rocha (Ipatingão)
Status: Project
Steel Structures: Roberto Martini (AM Estruturas)
Internal Lighting Technician: Sônia M Gomes (Dialux)