Faculty of Medical Sciences – Research Pole of Nova Medical School

Occupying part of the city block where, in the 16th century, the Convent of Santana was located, this is a reference modern space within the field of medical sciences. An extension of the Faculty of Medical Sciences of Universidade Nova de Lisboa, it integrates three new infrastructures: the Library, the Training Centre For Clinical Skills and the Centre for Toxicogenomics and Human Health. This important ensemble that intertwines with the city and its public space is characterized by an identity made out of different approaches, according to the questions raised by pre-existing constructions. A “skin” system was created as a solution to the new façades, protecting them from direct solar exposure. The façade that corresponds to the extension of one of the pre-existing buildings is made of serigraphed glass sheets, whereas the new volume’s is made of flat and perforated metallic sheets. This project states a clear distinction in regard to the old, re-establishing the relationship between the different urban tissues by means of a set of communicating platforms that connect and highlight the interventions of each period, asserting the contemporary aesthetics of the ensemble.