Made In Guimarães | António Rosa da Silva

The wash houses in Guimarães represent public venues associated with a single functional program that form the basis of a social fabric of continuity along the riverside of Couros. From the architectural point of view are places of great beauty, simple and mono-material construction, granite. In this specific case the tanks are at a lower level in relation to the street, next to the stream bed, creating an area of ​​some complexity but easy to understand on the functional level. The existence of this wash house is relatively discreet and reserved from the hustle and bustle of urban life protected by a granite fountain and pond that form the urban front of the plaza. The proposed functional structures is intended to strengthen and create conditions for the full enjoyment of the space, without changing it in a radical way. Conceptually it is proposed to place new elements of a contrasting nature so as the intervention to be easily perceived. The entry in the wash house is accented by a volume of sheet metal placed behind the granite fountain, reinforcing the connection from the washing with the urban space. We hope that this proposal meets the challenges of the program and provide a long lasting structure that is usable and easily assimilated by the population.