Porto architecture practice Merooficina has converted a former fisherman's house in Aveiro, Portugal, into two apartments that blend original features with new interventions.
Casa da Beiramar is located in the historic neighbourhood of Beira-Mar with its colourful terraced houses. These have long, narrow floor plans and an adobe structure, meaning they are built from bricks made of earth and other organic materials.
Above: Casa da Beiramar is situated in Aveiro's Beira-Mar neighbourhood. Top image: the ground-floor flat now opens up onto a patio
Clad in traditional azulejos tiles and decorated with green ceramic flowerpots, the houses were originally built for the local fishing community.
"This part of the city has been witnessing an interesting fusion between the old dwellers and more recent inhabitants," explained Merooficina founders Catarina Ribeiro and Vitório Leite. The downstairs kitchen features yellow tiles and marble countertops
The studio was commissioned by one of these new residents to restore a two-storey, 150-square-metre adobe house, which sits on a corner plot with two street-facing facades.
The client asked Merooficina to create a flexible design that would allow the building to be used in multiple different ways ? initially as two apartments but with a longterm view of converting it back into a single house or an office for the owner's new psychology practice.
The stairwell leading up to the first-floor apartment is painted blue
"We unders...