House in Arco do Cego

This group of houses fits in well with the stylistic and programmatic aspirations of the Portuguese regime while at the same time experimenting with a more international language inspired by the work of Mallet-Stevens in Paris (1926-1927), the villas by Le Corbusier for Pessac (1925-1926) or the Weissnhof complex for Deutscher Werkbund (1927). It was built by Construtora Nacional de Casas Económicas (SARL), an authority that regulated the Salazar regime’s social housing policies. In other developments built by the regime later, the stylistic language used was considerably more conservative, making this complex of considerable experimental value in the Portuguese context. This is a two-family house, with one residence per floor, facing the interior of the Arco do Cego neighbourhood. It is one of a total of six houses designed by Cassiano for Avenida António José de Almeida (nos. 10, 12, 14, 16, 18 and 24), characterised by an Art Déco-based approach. Pure volumes, a terrace, corner windows and slender door and window spans reveal the new possibilities of reinforced concrete when used in the small residential scale.