University Residence in the Azores by A.S* Atelier de Santos

a.s* - Atelier de Santos was established in 1997 by Célia Gomes and Pedro Machado Costa. It is a collective of architects based in Lisbon. Their Central Library of the Azores University was nominated for the Mies van der Rohe European Architecture Prize and selected for the FAD Architecture Prize in 2004. Their work has been widely published and exhibited both locally and internationally, namely in the Venice Architecture Biennale, in the Iberoamercian Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism and at the Architectural Association in London.

Portugal is still a traditional and conservative European country. So despite the many respected and well-known professionals working there, it’s no wonder that Portuguese architecture is not innovative and young architects barely have the opportunity or the will to prove their real value. One either follows a traditional approach as taught in universities or one looks for global influences and starts exploring his own route out . Pedro Machado Costa and Célia Gomes from a.s* belong to this last group of architects.

The University Residence is an important part of this professional search. A competition was held in 1998 but it took almost nine years to develop the project on São Miguel island in Azores. It is an industrial area in the periphery of the capital, Ponta Delgada, something between old industrial premises and low-quality suburban housing.

The project is the result of a balanced approach between building and landscape. The client requirements (accommodation for 300 students and related facilities) meant allocating functions around four buildings that hover above a sequence of park strips with different personalities. The Car Parking Strip and the Urban Stroll Strip are connectors; the Green Strip is the visual frontier; the Central Park Strip manages internal distribution; and the Events Strip is the place where things happen: orange grove, playing field, garden and lovers’ labyrinth, cycle rack and in the end, the rural path also known as Canada and the Meadow Strip, a multi-purpose green area.

This combination of the dream and the realism is indeed something new in Portugal. It represents a fresh approach to architecture there, where tradition is fused with contemporaneity. Without doubt, the architecture of a.s* continuously explores new avenues for professional practice, setting a turning point with this project for the younger generation of Portuguese architects.

Generally, the Universidade dos Açores has shown itself to be one of the local young architects' best clients: In the late '90s, with financial help from the European Union, the school administration called for a series of international competitions to design the building complexes of its growing campuses. Unconsciously, the administration's ground breaking ambitions led it to select emerging practitioners to realize the work, leading to a campus that is fast becoming a showcase of modern Portuguese architecture.

Comments

[JPC]

"it’s no wonder that Portuguese architecture is not innovative and young architects barely have the opportunity or the will to prove their real value."

Definitely you know nothing about portuguese arquitecture...

[Stratos]

I never pretended to know everything about Portuguese architecture. But try reading that singled-out phrase into the context of the article - I am not deriding anyone here, just making a point. Otherwise I would not have dedicated a post to Portuguese architects!

[Guilherme Silva]

It's good to see something from Azores at a very important site like this. Thank you very much.