Home Office Casca

This project’s major challenge is related to where it’s located—Encarnação, in one of the affordable housing neighbourhoods built during the Estado Novo regime, in the 40s—, which is reflected in a dwelling typology that implements a model of single-family semi-detached houses. Even though recalling the principles of the Garden City concept, there are still obvious stereotypes of the classic Casa Portuguesa style. This rehabilitation project takes on the challenge of reinterpreting a dwelling model which bears many signs of Portuguese history, providing an answer that emphasizes the contrast between the pre-existing and a new construction. The architects opted for extending the house by means of a concrete monolith that unfolds into gardens and patios, on different levels, turning vegetation into one of the most relevant elements for the interior areas. Not only does the project create these new spaces, but it also stimulates its experience as Garden House. This Home Office is a challenge met in regards to the preservation of the characteristics that identify a specific typology, while simultaneously stating a gesture of contemporaneity as an opportunity to add new possibilities, updating them in regards to present day dwelling.