Escola de Artes | Ketherine Maximova

Tasks: Ribeira is the oldest district of Porto: founded in Roman times overlooks the River Douro keeping intact the chaotic charm of its small streets. low houses, colorful facades, old shops, characterize the district that was insert in UNESCO for its typical morphology. The Luis I Bridge, which connects the two sides of the city, was built in 1880 boasting a strong structure of steel trusses. Porto isn’t only the city of bridges but it is also the place of colored tiles that cover the buildings, the azulejos. Note is the facade of Sao Bento station, covered by about 20000 all hand-painted tiles. Art, history, local traditions are the ideal breeding ground for the new Escola de Artes which will become a renewal element of the historic city. Placing near the existing Escola de photograph must draw a small cultural citadel in the ancient center of Porto. Workshops and exhibitions will make the place an attraction site capable to transform instances of the past in contemporary signs.

Idea: The transparent facade responds to the need to ensure continuity with Escola de Fotografia. The functions are placed below the road level while the volume above the ground is a window, a space that becomes a meeting place for the local community. The glass partitions are protected by green climbers, which change the light conditions, creating ever-different effects by changing the visual perception of the environments. the cafés and the exhibition hall on the first level find continuity with the rooms below the square; Through a system of ramps and double heights to the spaces establish a visual and functional continuity with the upper rooms. Laboratories, auditoriums and exhibition halls retain their own functional autonomy but are interconnected to allow interactive didactic enjoyment whenever necessary. The regularity of the design favors an easy perception of the paths, a classicism that, combined with the lightness of the structure, shows a contrast between present and past from the promenade.