JA HOUSE BY FILIPE PINA AND MARIA INES COSTA

Making new out of a Portuguese ruin

Lately, it seems traditional Mediterranean architecture is getting a bit of a face lift. We have said several times: making new from old is becoming more than a simple trend. The JA House by Filipe Pina and Maria Ines Costa is just more proof of that. The Portuguese home mixes rural and urban lifestyles so efficiently that it almost makes starting from scratch seem pointless.

This project was built on existing stone ruins. Yet, the whole house has been reshaped. The former house has been modernized and completed with a new concrete volume. This one has straighter lines and contrasts strongly with the granite shape of the old house. Both volumes are linked by a metal and transparent structure containing the stairways. The new reorganization occupies the full length of the land.

Inside, another old concept has been modernized and use as a basis. Both buildings are connected by a central courtyard that provides light in the middle of the house and maximizes space inside. The courtyard and the stairs are at the core of the house and are key elements for the spatial relationship between the different parts of the house. They create a continuity between the two volumes, indispensable in the case of such a project. Indeed, to create new from old efficiently very often comes down to creating a coherent link between the two styles, the two eras. In this case, it is a success.