SPACE January 2026 (No. 698)
Three semi-circular cuts within an endless plot, a consistent duality: part empty, part baroque.
Within the extensive sloping plot, three semi-circular buildings are placed, each assuming a different relationship with the existing terrain. The three structures vary in size (S, M, and L) depending on the programme. One is a private house, another is a shared house, and the third is a generous event hall, ready to accommodate any kind of activity. The curved wall of each semi-circle serves as a retaining wall, while the straight one is purposed as a big window facing toward the landscape. The three buildings are part of the same system, in terms of intentions, metrics, and materiality. Each figure is cut with a diagonal wall that separates the public and the private. Each cut is different. The space behind each diagonal wall is a cutout of an existing house built in 1976 by Frank Gehry, Ito Toyo, or Álvaro Siza. When solving the plan for the project, the idea of a complex, baroque-like space, as the opposite of the big void, only made sense as a reference from elsewhere. The borrowed plans are copy-pasted and then, adhering to the project’s material ...
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Architect
fala (Filipe Magalhães, Ana Luisa Soares, Ahm
Design team
Joana Sendas, João Carlos Lopes, Dolma Garcia
Location
Sobral de Monte Agraço, Portugal
Programme
collective compound
Site area
15,000m²
Gross floor area
500m²
Parking
2
Height
5m
Building to land ratio
3%
Structure
RC
Exterior finishing
aluminium window, metal cap
Interior finishing
plastered wall, painted exposed concrete wall, ter
Structural engineer
Marcio Pimenta
Construction
Novos Constructores Lda
Design period
2022 – 2024
Construction period
2023 – 2024
Cost
850,000 EUR
Filipe Magalhães
Filipe Magalhães, born in Porto, Portugal, in 1987, graduated from the University of Porto (FAUP), including an exchange year in Ljubljana, Slovenia. He completed his PhD in Architecture at the same institution. He has collaborated with Harry Gugger in Basel and with SANAA in Tokyo, and has served as a Guest Professor at EPFL Lausanne. He has been a Partner at fala since 2013.
Ana Luisa Soares
Ana Luisa Soares, born in Marco de Canaveses, Portugal, in 1988, graduated from the University of Porto, including an exchange year at the University of Tokyo. She has collaborated with Harry Gugger in Basel and with Ito Toyo in Tokyo, has served as a Guest Professor at EPFL Lausanne and HEAD Genève, and is currently a PhD researcher at University of Porto. She has been a Partner at fala since 2013.
Ahmed Belkhodja
Ahmed Belkhodja, born in Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1990, graduated from EPFL Lausanne and ETH Zurich. He completed his PhD at the University of Porto. He has collaborated with Obra Architects in New York, Harry Gugger in Basel, and Atelier Bow-Wow in Tokyo, and has served as a Guest Professor at EPFL Lausanne, HEAD Genève, and ENSA Paris-Est. He has been a Partner at fala since 2014.
Lera Samovich
Lera Samovich, born in Novokuznetsk, Russia, in 1991, graduated from the Moscow School of Architecture and completed her PhD at the University of Porto. She has collaborated with Bureau Alexander Brodsky and ASSE Architects in Moscow, has served as a Guest Professor at EPFL Lausanne, and has worked at fala since 2014, becoming a Partner in 2021.
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