Creating something from scratch requires creativity and innovation. Building upon the existing building requires more creativity and innovation a greater understanding of innovation greater than .. Existing structures limits the imagination, limits what can be done …
Like building was to build a three-bedroom house on top of a warehouse built in the 80’s, where part of the roof was made with a flat slab and a small balcony, precisely with that idea of later building the house.
Given the constraints of the existing warehouse, the house shape turns out to be automatically set: a box that rests on the existing structure. The rooms are placed to the east, the toilets to the west, as well as the kitchen, looking to a centennial olive tree. The existing balcony will be maintained and “duplicated” as a shading element. The living room is placed south where its south/east corner is diagonally cut in a way that the balcony could enlarge and offer an outdoor area protected from the sun and rain, overlooking the valley.
HOUSE ON A WAREHOUSE
2007-2012, CHÍCHARO, TORRES NOVAS, PORTUGAL
Architecture: Miguel Marcelino
Structural Engineering: 560Eng (João Esteves)
Plumbing Engineering: 560Eng (José Rodrigues)
General Contractor: João Felício
Gross Floor Area: 138m2
Gross Volume: 437m3
Building Footprint: 114m2
Site Area: 4.108m2
Energy Efficiency Class: A
Location: Chícharo, Torres Novas, Portugal
Client: Cândido Vieira
Photographs: João Morgado
