SPACE January 2026 (No. 698)
The new structure enters the existing building on its own terms. A row of thin metal poles carries an I-beam stretching from front to back. When needed, beams are interrupted. These cuts are exposed and celebrated. The new elements are painted in bright red and blue. They occupy positions within the space that are deliberately disruptive, blocking doors, windows and passages. Because of that inconvenience the structure becomes visible. It is an active participant of the space. Besides the structure, the building required a few fragmented interventions. Within the interior space, very little was demolished, and a couple of strategic walls were added. Towards the street, the building acquired a reflective hat, towards the back a new translucent layer mitigates the question of insulation, offering an enclosed balcony on each level, and a new mask, made of glass, yellow frames, stripes of mirror, and marble.
*You can see more information on the SPACE No. January (2026).
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, 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, 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, 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.
