Despite located in a rural context of complex characterization the BL house develops a true relation with the exterior surroundings through an extended patio that leads to a plateau where we can gather around a bonfire. the entrance in space and amplitude suggests the remaining spaces and combines the three floors in a straightforward way.
This project was conceived and designed by means of an extensive and highly participatory process, in which the communities of Terras da Costa were always present and actively involved in the discussion.
The project is the outcome of an invitation in 2005 of a family-based wine-making and agro-business company to master plan an innovative resort concept that would combine the rural experience of wine and olive oil production, with the amenities of leisure destination. With 66 hectares, the site is in the vicinity of the whitewashed town of Montemor-o-novo, in the Alentejo, near the UNESCO-listed city of Évora. Located on a gentle valley facing South and overlooking the skyline of the town’s medieval castle, the master plan was devised in a system of clustered villas and terraced row-houses reminiscent of the former agricultural compounds of the Alentejo, known as “monte”, which literally means “mount” or “hill” in English; an etymological reference to its topographic condition. In addition, a small lake cools the air and is used for leisure activities besides serving as a sustainable water-retaining basin for agriculture.
Project is located in Anjos, Lisbon, Portugal, a zone where the industry mixes with housing buildings in a very dense urban tissue.
The pre-existing space had a function of carpentry, with a limited access to light and a small, lacking identity exterior space.
We decided to maintain as much as possible in the interior, except for the part of a back facade to let more natural daylight in and enforce the relation between interior-exterior.
Located in the city of Vale de Cambra, the Casa da Eira (literally “The House of the threshing-floor”) was a rehabilitation challenge with about 400m2 of construction.
A century-old house that was very degraded and needed a major overhaul, that would revive the memory of the original design without forgetting the current needs. The owner wanted a residence where he could have a traditional and familiar setting, not forgetting its irreverent and creative side. A place where friends are always welcome.
This apartment, built in the 80s, has problems that are typical of the architectural debilities of most of the portuguese housing buildings of the second half of the XX century: low ceilings throughout the house, subdivided spaces, long narrow kitchens, winding corridors and numerous protrusions of pillars and beams that reveal an unresolved conflict between structure and architecture.
The old house was found in a sequence of equally discrete buildings from different periods of the 20th century. Built originally for a single family, and abandoned for decades, the brief proposed transforming the ruin into a housing unit with five apartments, responding to the accelerated gentrification process in the area.
Situated on the northern side of S.Miguel Island, the plot has an open view over the sorrounding fields and woods.
The client expressed a desire of openness and harmony with nature, and very little concerns about how he would like the interior of the house, except from the wish of including memories of old travels through some objects.
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