Two fairytale hotels (and that count) in Porto
There is an exceptional symbiosis between the contemporary architecture of the great Porto architects and the cultural and historical evolution of the city. the distinguished Fernando Tavora, Álvaro Siza, Eduardo Souto de Moura and their avid disciples they mark the contemporary spirit of the city, its new roads and the urban landscaping that we contemplate. The walk up the stairs Santa Maria da Feira Market by Master Tavora , the Faculty of Architecture or the Serralves Foundation of Álvaro Siza , or the renovation of the Alfandega in the National Transport Museum by Eduardo Souto de Moura, are essential visits to get to know the city, its essential evolution and even the character of its inhabitants.
Regarding today's design, **we must highlight the innovative visions of Lizá Defossez Ramalho and Artur Rebelo ** -founders of the R2 studio -, and Antonio Leitão Barbosa . They have been intervening in the city for years in works with groundbreaking points of view although faithful to tradition, stringing together architectural stories that provide a new perspective.
Two recent examples are hotels Discoveries and Do Conto , storybook spaces for the stories that are evoked inside.
Fairytale and in Porto: nothing can go wrong
** DISCOVERY HOTEL **
Antonio Leitao Barbosa , professor of architecture at the Superior Artistic School of Porto, calls himself "the hidden architect" ; His name does not appear in his study and he does not have a website. He expresses himself through his work, his interventions . One of the latest is the rehabilitation of the Casa da Prelada house-museum, Archivo Histórico da Misericordia and its gardens, which include a beautiful labyrinth. In the conversation about his career, he cannot fail to point out his love for his city at all times: “ Porto reminds me of the duality of the Greek gods Dionysus and Apollo , the curved topography of the streets and the vertical determination of its houses, the intersection between the dogmatism of the beauty of the layout and the licenses of the purely sensory”, he explains with his usual enthusiasm.
One of the rooms of Hotel Descobertas
The Descobertas hotel was one of his challenges: to give life to the old headquarters of the Industrial Mercantile Society of Ribera de Porto.
Hotel Descobertas will make you dream of Cape Verde, India, Brazil...
The interior design, designed in collaboration with ** Pilar Paiva de Pousa **, represents an immersion in the Portuguese Age of Discovery, in which its exotic colonies were and which today form part of the city's multiculturalism. Each floor and some of its rooms they make us dream of Mozambique, Cape Verde, India, Brazil or Macao.
Hall of the Hotel Descobertas
Located next to the central area of the Ribeira, it shows a singular entrance of openings to catch the light from the street. The lighting environment and the good mix between rustic and industrial furniture generates warmth , and in each corner the decorative and artistic details recall the exotic origin of each geographical destination.
Facade of the Hotel Descobertas
HOTEL DO CONTO
This small hotel newly opened, It has several international awards for architecture and design, including the first prize of the European Design Awards.
Stairs of Hotel do Conto
The rehabilitation of an old 19th century house was carried out by the group of architects liquid stone , which has worked with reinforced concrete blocks that give it a brutalist-minimalist look. Skylights and a central oval skylight illuminate the interior with natural light.
An old renovated house from the 19th century
But it is the designers of R2 who have endowed each of the six rooms with poetry, through typographic compositions. Texts by Filipa Leal, Alvaro Domingues, Jorge Figueira, André Tavares, Nuno Grande and Pedro Bandeira , they tell stories from each room: the city and its stories emerge through each sentence prayed on the cement walls.
Inside one of the rooms
Liza and Artur, sentimental and professional couple, founded R2 10 years ago . Passionate about Porto, they reveal their personal opinion about its evolution: “The climate of the city is one of constant growth . As creatives we feel that there are very interesting cultural projects related to design, contemporary art and architecture. We create links between these disciplines and jump from one project to another with great flexibility. There is a very open environment for experimentation ”, they comment in unison.
Design and comfort in the center of Porto
Interior terrace of the Hotel Do Conto