EMBAIXADA

Project: Tomar Environmental Monitoring and Interpretation Offices, EMIO, Tomar / Portugal
This conversion of an old building came out of a government-funded project for the revival and revitalization of quiet and forgotten areas of the country. The project involved the complete gutting of the existing building. Only the outer shell was left standing, tying together the new sculptural elements that form the inner life of the building - and with no actual contact between the old exterior and the new interior. The existing shell, with its crisp whitewash finish, is sharply differentiated from the new structures created inside, which are executed throughout in grey concrete and extend up through two floors.

The jury's verdict: "Apart from the functional change of use, the conversion of the interior has delivered a fantastically exciting new spatial experience."

Website: www.embaixada.net

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