351 Design Street

A park facing the Tagus River

After a great absence in the blogosphere, today I bring you a very good example of a river front regeneration.
The Vila Franca de Xira municipality has surprised me several times in recent years. One of my discoveries took place during the spring of 2012: the Tagus Linear Park.
Work begun at the end of 2011, and when I visited it for the first time was still under construction, but it can now be [almost] fully enjoyed. Located near industrial areas, this park, which regenerated part of the river front, occupies an area of 15,5 ha and presents several leisure and recreational possibilities, such as walking and cycling paths that run along streams and drainage ditches, platforms for fishing, shelters, picnic areas, a volleyball court and a playground.
The landscape design was created by Topiaris – Arquitectura Paisagista and the area built next to Praia dos Pescadores, designed by Difusor de Arquitectura, presents a solution with recycled maritime containers painted in white and partially clad with wood. Here we can find the Center for Environmental and Landscape Interpretation (not yet working in this location), a coffee shop and the bathrooms.
This is a different and very pleasant setting where these winter sunny days, though cold, radiate a fascinating light and brightness.

Photo platform[az]

You can see here a video of the park filmed with a drone, produced and edited by João Morgado

Ana

23:08

Nelson Garrido - Boa Nova Tea House

I often visit Nelson Garrido's website. His photos have a magnetic effect on me and I can not have enough of them.
Today I bring you four wonderful photos of the Boa Nova Tea House, a project by Siza Vieira built between 1956 and 1963. It was closed, abandoned and forgotten for several years, but recently it was renovated with the architect’s supervision and reopened as a restaurant by chef Rui Paula.

Marta.

Photos by Nelson Garrido.

09:42

The Versatility of Microcement

I was invited by Nanocrete participate in a Microcrete microcement workshop and, seeing at 351 Design Street we have a particular interest in concrete (Marta wrote a post about this material here) and its multiple uses, I accepted the challenge.

Microcement allows for minimalistic results that are similar to cement and is currently being used extensively due to the contemporary language it conveys to architecture and design. Aesthetics, functionality and the quick application method, make this material a good choice for spaces in need of renovation, especially if the floor or the walls are to be replaced without removing the existing ones.

With a wide color palette, this material is used in interiors and exteriors, and can be applied on the several surfaces, such as wood, MDF boards, tile or even glass. It does not need expansion joints (except when applied on a material that needs these joints), it is water and grease resistant and has low weight.

The versatility of the material allows that extraordinary environments and design pieces be created: the floors and kitchen counters, as in the restaurant Conceito in Estoril (Portugal), or 1300 Taberna at the LXFactory, Lisbon (Portugal); in bathrooms or decoration details, as can be seen in the bas-relief letters in the Hotel Casa do Conto, in Porto (Portugal) designed by the Pedra Líquida architecture collective or in the extraordinary The Initiation project, designed by Wei Yi Design Associates.

Microcrete is a brand among several others in the market, but this one, not only does it give everyone interested the opportunity to participate in a workshop to get to know the product, but it can also state they are 100% Portuguese!

Ana

Hotel Casa do Conto designed by Pedra Líquida architecture collective

Via www.yatzer.com

Restaurant Conceito
Via https://www.caras.sapo.pt

1300 Taberna
Via mesamarcada.blogs.sapo.pt

Via http://tatianadoria.blogspot.pt

Via www.hotfrog.pt

Via http://forumdacasa.com

The Initiation – Wei Yi Design Associates
Via https://www.behance.net/gallery/WEI-YI-DESIGN-ASSOCIATES-THE-INITIATION/10434085

Color scheme for microcement
Via http://www.microcementuk.info

21:20

Côa Museum

In Portugal’s northeastern mountains schist rocks that border the banks of the Côa, a tributary of the Douro River, became art panels for our ancestors 25,000 years ago. The last seventeen kilometers of the Côa River, with hundreds of engravings on its margins, became the first Portuguese archaeological park and in 1998 was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
This extensive collection of outdoor rock art sets aside the myth that this type of art can only be seen in closed caves and therefore its historical value is priceless.

With the existence of the Côa Valley Archaeological Park there was a need for a museum that would not only welcome some of the panels at risk, but also inform and disseminate the rock art of the Côa Valley to its visitors. Thus, in 2003, during the International Year of Architecture, the Ministry of Culture in partnership with the Association of Portuguese Architects launched a competition for the design of the Museum of Art and Archaeology of the Côa Valley. The first prize was given to the team coordinated by architects Camilo Rebelo and Tiago Pimentel.

Completed in 2009, the monolithic triangular shaped building with four floors (one of them underground), is characterized by the impressive straight and contemporary lines, but nonetheless in perfect harmony with the surrounding landscape.
The concrete structure was designed to look like the local schist through the use of fiberglass molds.
The that ramp crosses the entire permanent exhibition floor connects the spaces and distributes visitors.

The pictures speak for themselves. This museum is worth a visit, not only for the historical and cultural enrichment, but also for the building itself.

Marta.

via Fundação Côa Parque

via arch daily

21:48

Encaustic cement tiles - the storytellers!

This past week I read at A Ervilha Cor de Rosa a post about encaustic cement tiles. A few years ago I would passthese and would not give them much thought, but nowadays looking at a floor (or wall!) that has them will make my day! But what is encaustic cement tile and what’s the story behind it?
Encaustic cement tiles – or hydraulic tiles - are completely handmade made from cement that is hardened through a hydraulic press instead of being baked. The art of encaustic cement tiles was born in southern France in the late 19th century, but spread largely to Spain, Italy, England and Portugal. It was popular for its resistance and decorative qualities: with encaustic cement tiles you can tell several different stories. It was considered exclusive to the upper class of the time due to its manual manufacturing process.
With the industrialization of the 60s other less elaborate and more profitable materials gradually replaced it and it was, eventually, forgotten and almost disappeared. However, in recent years we have witnessed a reuse of this material in contemporary architecture with retro touches. Therefore, we’re entering a major new phase of manufacture. Of course this new phase, as Rosa Pomar said in her post "mosaico hidráulico 2.0", has both good and bad consequences. The good? The new impulse due to the vintage and retro trend going on right now, resulting in more fans and more manufacturers and invariably more options. The bad? Poor quality imitations in which the pattern is printed.
The real encaustic cement tile still has to be produced as it was originally; despite the technological advances, it is still impossible to industrially reproduce the colors, matte finish and soft texture of the handmade mosaic.

Marta.

via pinterest

via oppa

via mosaic del sur

via arquitete

via egue & seta

14:52

Cabanas no Rio

Approximately an hour south of Lisbon, Portugal, and five minutes away from the Comporta beach, on the banks of the Sado River are these two cabins with 14m2 each. One features the bedroom and en-suite bathroom with a shower (which can be used indoors or outdoors); the other, a living room and a small kitchen for light meals. There’s also a small porch with amazing river views.
Cabanas no Rio (in English, Cabins on the River), were once fishermen’s huts. The reinterpretation project took place in 2013 and was designed by Aires Mateus, architects. The construction is entirely in reclaimed timber, including most of the furniture, and the whole structure was built off-site and transported by a truck.
The timber was purposely left exposed and therefore subjected to the weather that will keep on changing it. For the Architects this means not degradation but an identity change.
And you can even spend the night here. Cabanas no Rio is a great complement to the region, well-known for its white-sand beaches, wine, food and dolphin, stork and flamingo watching.

Marta.

Photos by Nelson Garrido

21:13

Great ice cream parlor that's pumping up the Anjos neighborhood

An old bakery on Rua do Forno do Tijolo has been renovated into a simple and hipster ice cream parlor. The recently opened Fábrica do Gelado has maintained the appearance and several details of the former bakery: the interesting and unusual ceramic ivory-colored and the golden-brown tiles, the marble counters, the flooring and some of the paintings on the walls. Renovation works took into consideration rehabilitation ethics, where [most] changes are reversible, and mainly dealt with small modifications in order to adapt the space into an ice-cream parlor and to comply with the legislation.

Ivory-colored and brown tiles

Flooring

Of the existing paintings, three were rehabilitated by Akto and where the others stood, one can now see the works of Colectivo Francês, which depict Fábrica do Gelado’s trade and its partners.

Drawings by Clolectivo Francês

The space only fits a handful of people, meaning it is a place to essentially grab and go. Nonetheless, they managed to fit two stools for those who enjoy taking their time eating their ice cream, homemade cake, hot chocolate or Nespresso coffee, the tasty treats they currently currently sell.

Take-away boxes

The two business partners, architects Andreia Salavessa, of ateliermob, and Zoraima de Figueiredo, of platform[az], aim to help develop the Anjos neighborhood by purchasing, as much as possible, fresh produce and goods locally. Zoraima’s uncle, Hélder Costa, with 40+ years of experience, trained the two partners. This Italian-style ice cream uses fresh ingredients and no artificial preserves or colorings. Flavors, especially the fruit ones, will vary according to the season, but the all-timers lime-mint, passion fruit, salted caramel and yogurt excel. A very close second come lemon, red berries, fig, strawberry and melon.

18 ice cream flavors

Keep on the lookout: This could soon be Lisbon's number one ice cream!

Ana

16:45