Site Specific: Monte dos Judeus 74

oitoo - Porto, Portugal, 2012-2019

Portuguese practice oitoo have taken a disused scrap of land, within a dense hillside neighbourhood in Porto, and created an intricate urban ensemble, interwoven with a series of new terraces and revitalised gardens. Utilising fragments of existing buildings, topographical opportunities and the judicious invention of new ‘old’ elements, the project stitches together a gap in the built fabric of an historical neighbourhood.

oitoo A ruin and a romantic garden laid dormant in a property in the heart of Porto, Portugal, overlooking the Douro River. Lush overgrown terraces, massive granite walls and the briny air blend with the densely built riverfront and the red hues of the roof tiles to create a unique atmosphere and sense of place.

A careful reading of the site’s specificity and underlying qualities allowed us to preserve and use them as sparks for the project. The intervention in this venerable site was carried out in three steps: restoration, rebuilding and extension of the existing ruin. In the process, the romantic garden was brought back to its former self. A seamless extension added density and stabilized the pre-existing building, totaling four new apartments. A new pavilion created a patio for the residents, while overlooking the garden. This new volume mediates the scale of the two outdoor spaces, establishing at the same time a quiet dialogue with the preexisting building.

The project searches for a new unity, where old and new are not read in contrast but rather as the merging of preexisting qualities and new sober, quiet additions. New will not be immediately perceived as new; old will be restored without losing its glamour; new and old will no longer be new and old. Only the careful glance will have the pleasure to tell which is which.

NOTES

Thanks to Nuno Rodrigues and everyone at oitoo for their help in compiling this post.

Photographs © Fernando Guerra.

Published 26th February 2024.