Casa Ferraz

The intervention consisted in the rehabilitation of a ruin in a typical narrow and contorted street in the historic center of Porto. We were asked to transform the building in two new apartments with a small budget. The plot has an unusual configuration in this part of town: has greater width than depth, and a single facade. The adopted strategy was to reuse the scarce original elements in good condition and integrate them within the new apartments. Some stone walls and traditional partitions were left in sight, as well as granite windows, giving the respective room a memory of its original character. The small apartment on the ground floor takes advantage of the high ceiling to create a mezzanine. In the upper apartment, along the entire length of the building, we organized a continuous living-room and kitchen. Here, too, we used the high ceiling and roof slope to create a room and a new balcony facing south, ruled by the immense view of the typical Porto roofs.