A new reinterpretation. Second skin by danielmsantos, eng + arq

04/04/2022. [Figueira da Foz] Portugal
metalocus, CARLOS RUBIO

Second-skin by danielmsantos, eng + arq is the rehabilitation of a building that evokes memories of the past giving a new, bolder core. The building is located in the Portuguese city of Figueira da Foz, in the district of Coimbra. A coastal city bathed by the Atlantic Ocean.

The project is reinterpreted two centuries after it was erected, resorting to a bold language that confronts the pre-existence but without overlapping it. The result is a project that takes on the future but preserves the past.

Second skin by danielmsantos, eng + arq. Photograph by Ivo Tavares Studio.

Second skin by danielmsantos, eng + arq. Photograph by Ivo Tavares Studio.

Ground floor plan. Second skin by danielmsantos, eng + arq.

First floor plan. Second skin by danielmsantos, eng + arq.

Second floor plan. Second skin by danielmsantos, eng + arq.

Rooftop plan. Second skin by danielmsantos, eng + arq.

Section. Second skin by danielmsantos, eng + arq.

Façade. Second skin by danielmsantos, eng + arq.

Perspective. Second skin by danielmsantos, eng + arq.

The most outstanding material in Second skin by danielmsantos, eng + arq is copper, which stands as a link between the new and the existing, as well as wrapping the entire building. A touch of contemporaneity is added with more angular and daring shapes through the use of the so-called "bubble".

With the refurbishment of the building, greater accessibility for people with reduced mobility is achieved as direct access is via the courtyard. In addition, for the optimal use of the first floor, the roofs of the peripheral areas were increased to promote the interconnection between the new and the pre-existing.

Description of project by danielmsantos, eng + arq

With a close relationship with the Mondego river, the building rehabilitated by the architecture and engineering office danielmsantos evokes memories of the belle époque in elegant Figueira da Foz and gives it a new, bolder and irreverent core.

Two centuries after being brought up, a new challenge comes to this riverside building that was once a manor house and hosted Municipalized Services. Pedro Daniel Santos, the architect of this rehabilitation project, embraced the adventure of preserving the character, beauty, history and brand of the building, adapting it, modernizing it, and empowering it to live new stories.

A new history.

This reinterpretation resorts to a bold language that confronts the existing without, with that, overlapping it. Thus, a new building that preserves the past and assumes the future emerges, introducing a new reality and philosophy, as a reaction to new social and urban paradigms.

Copper stands as the link between the existing and the new, enveloping the entire building, sometimes adding a touch of contemporaneity with bold and angular shapes, others incorporating its essence, assuming itself as a whole, which extends, wraps and involves.

Cantilevered over the patio, the "bubble", as it is affectionately called the most visible part of the new intervention, not only gives a new (and irreverent) front to the building, standing out and shows itself as the focus of the street, as it is the new welcoming element of the building, assuming the functions of reception and main office.

The space use paradigm was rationalized and maximized, having achieved greater accessibility, being able to receive people with reduced mobility, with direct access to the building now taking place through the east patio, by elevator or staircase. In addition to providing a space for parking vehicles with an electric charging station and a technical area/engine room, the patio is now the main entrance to the building, promoting the way the building has acceded. The new relationship between the building and the street was greatly benefited: there is no longer a disfigured gable and another prominent element was created, a new heart, which gives new life to the building that supports it.

For an adequate use of the 2nd floor, a slight increase in the rooftop was carried out in the peripheral areas (the ridge kept the same level), so that, in addition to rationalizing the use of the existing space with the use of the attic of the roof between the roof windows, the interconnection between the old and the new was promoted by giving a contemporary look to the building without interfering with the urban landscape around it.

At the interior level, the intervention adapted the building to the new use concept.

Despite being profound, with a new organization of the interior areas and the creation of new valences, the rehabilitation sought to be minimalist, in a subtle fusion between the contemporary, the usability and the preservation of the timeless character of the building.

The original aspects and construction techniques, sometimes exuberant, sometimes handcrafted, now gain a new stage with the conservation and recovery of the impressive plaster ceilings that adorn the entire 1st floor, the marble-effect paintings in the corridors or the partition, now a feature wall in one of the sanitary facilities.

The palette of interior tones was intentionally chosen to simultaneously create an environment conducive to work and highlight the eclectic collection of art and furniture that punctuates the various spaces of the building.

The building, which already had a close relationship with light, now gains a whole new luminosity, achieved not only by subtle features but also with the imposing spans of the new intervention and the choice of materials and colours.

More information

Architects

danielmsantos, eng + arq. Lead architect.- Pedro Daniel Santos.

Area

1,320 sqm.

Dates

2021.

Location

Figueira da Foz, Potugal.

Photography

Ivo Tavares Studio.

Pedro Daniel Santos danielmsantos, eng + arq

danielmsantos, eng + arq is an architecture studio based in Figueira da Foz, Portugal, led by architect Pedro Daniel Santos.

Doing Architecture is more than just designing a building. Architecture is art! The art of making a city in a harmonious way combines the needs/interests of the developer with the morphology and specificities of the city.

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