Casa Do Conto_by Nuno e Alexandra Grande

"Betão poroso aos sonhos" ♥
"Deitas-te sob e sobre mim" ♥

Sometimes life is ironic and just when you think that everything is burnt – literally speaking –blossom emerges from the ashes. Such is the case with the Casa do Conto (House of Tales), arts&residence – a new Hotel design concept in the Cedofeita area in central Porto, Portugal; the lovely XIX Century Oporto House was being restored by Pedra Líquida (Liquid Stone) architectural office three years ago, once the historical restoration process was completed and just a few days before the hotel’s grand opening the historical building suffered a terrible fire, and from its ashes the new Casa do Conto was born.

Despite the distress and the sadness caused by this fire, the architects had to rebuild it, and rebuild it in a way so that it would be better than ever before so as to minimize the feeling of the loss. In fact, what was left of it acted as the ‘skeleton’ to build around where ''the memory of that special house, was reborn from the ashes, like the Phoenix.'' Essentially, the project abstractly suggests the ornamentation of the former historical building and its wall textures by applying traditional surfaces such as crossed wood patterns, corrugated steel plates and curved plywood panels – as a ''mould'' for the new concrete walls. These ''moulds'' were used in the back façade, the central staircase, the oval-shaped central skylight and the cubic bathrooms which are located in every suite. The result is a new skin referred to as a type of ‘fossilized architecture’ where the new modern skin rephrases the pre-existing one.