Porto is keeping the momentum up as the city is alive and delivering, says Wallpaper
Article
On 27 August 2019, Wallpaper has published online a comprehensive article on Porto's fine examples of architecture, pinpointing "Porto's modern architecture moment".
In fact, this is Porto's moment, a well-deserved one. The city knew how to capitalise the boom in tourism and took the opportunity to revitalise the historic city centre, UNESCO World Heritage Site as of 1996.
Besides being among the top three most intagrammable destinations, according to CEOWORLD magazine, which stated that "Porto is all Baroque tiles and towers", Wallpaper says "not exactly"; residents, dwellers and visitors love the new buildings restored, the sense of joy emanating from the city and to the city, as if the city is done with hibernating (do not mistake with the sort of fairy tale haze or salty mist that visit us sometimes and are also inherent to the city of Porto), and it is indeed agreeable to observe as once derelict buildings are now revitalised, with "new businesses and cafes popping up".
The work of Mayor Rui Moreira and his team has been crucial in restoring the dignity of the Invicta, as it has always been there - dignity - which is something no one can give you or take it from you or from a city.
Rui Moreira has made it his mission to restore the city and the result is in plain sight: investment, which begun with Porto's designation as a 2001 European Culture Capital, "the cultivation of homegrown architectural talent at the Porto School of Architecture, of which world renowned Portuguese architects, Pritzker-winning alumnae Álvaro Siza Vieira and Eduardo Souto de Moura are top examples, and the thrive to transition to new infrastructure with designs from the international greats.
In this line, Wallpaper highlights architect Kengo Kuma and Associates in collaboration with OODA, who won a competition in 2018 to transform the Porto Slaughterhouse (Matadouro). A place that has been abandoned for two decades and is expected to be transformed into "spaces for art, performance, and archives under an undulating ceramic roof". Let's hope that this chrysalis turns into a beautiful butterfly.
It is Porto's momentum. This is a fact. As wallpaper puts it, for everyone to read or listen, "Porto is keeping the momentum up. Local practices overflow with restorations and reclamations as boutique hotels or private homes make the most of the unusual spaces offered by Porto's old centre. The larger projects tend to be a mix of residential and new hotels "while civic works try to walk the line between catering for the tourist boom and creating good spaces for locals".
Read the full article here, where you can find a selection of architectural projects catering to this renewed interest in Porto, including a House In Rua do Paraíso by Fala, Urbo Business Centre by Nuno Capa Arquitecto, the hub for offices and services in central Porto that seems more like a forum, or a project of nine flats at Alferes Malheiro Building by Franca Arquitectura, that mimics Porto's towers, while also allowing ultra-energy efficiency.