‘It’s a functioning home,
not a site of architectural
pilgrimage,’ says Lobo
As such, the house is upside down: the living room
and its sweeping east-facing terrace are on the top loor;
the kitchen and pool terrace are on the loor below;
the second loor houses the parents’ study and bedroom;
and the irst loor belongs to the children. On the top
loor is an origami-style corner window, created
speciically to ofer views over Mar da Palha, the Sea of
Hay. With its shallow waters and shimmering yellow
sands, this particular spot in the Tagus estuary holds
a special place in the hearts of Lisboetas.
At a recent lecture in São Paulo, Lobo compared
the house to a Brazilian SESC. The non-proit Serviço
Social do Comércio, or community centre, is a wholly
Brazilian concept, created in the 1940s by a guild of
businessmen to provide their workers with health
services, sporting and cultural activities. ‘SESCs are
very important in Brazil,’ says Lobo, ‘and like this
house, each level ofers a diferent programme.’ (Last
year, Mendes da Rocha and Brazilian architects MMBB
completed the 14-storey SESC 24 de Maio in a disused
department store in the centre of São Paulo.)
To complement the work of the 89-year-old master
architect, the owners sourced much of their furniture
from Brazil. There are stools by the late Joaquim
Tenreiro, a ‘Multidão’ chair by the Campana brothers,
a ‘Petalas’ cofee table by Jorge Zalszupin, Carlos
Motta’s ‘Astúrias’ armchairs and a ‘Paulistano’ armchair
by Mendes da Rocha himself, as well as a work by
local artist Miguel Ângelo Rocha, and a chandelier
by Italian designer Mario Nanni.
With its architectural pedigree, the house could
feel like a show home, but each space is created on a
deliberately domestic scale. ‘The family live together
in a very informal way,’ says Lobo. ‘It’s a functioning
home, not a site of architectural pilgrimage.’
Taking in the views from the terrace, it’s impossible
not to notice the hundreds of cranes punctuating the
rooftops of Lisbon’s pastel townhouses. Thanks to an
injection of EU money and a property boom fuelled bya preferential tax regime, huge areas of Lisbon are
under construction or renovation. But not all projects
will be as striking or successful as this house, a future-
facing space in an old-fashioned shell. ‘We preserved
the patrimony of the building and its façade, while
modernising the interiors,’ says Mendes da Rocha.
‘Finding new uses for buildings in ancient, historical
cities around the world is something architecture
students should be taking a great interest in today.’ ∂
ilobo.ptLEFT, A SITE-SPECIFIC
ARTWORK BY PORTUGUESE
ARTIST MIGUEL ÂNGELO
ROCHA WRAPS ITSELF
AROUND THE FIREPLACE
IN THE TOP-FLOOR LIVING
ROOM, FURNISHED WITH
JORGE ZALSZUPIN’S
‘PETALAS’ COFFEE TABLE
AND ‘PRESIDENTIAL’
LOUNGE CHAIRS
BELOW, THE NEWLY
RENOVATED FAÇADE, WITH
ITS 1930S TILES. AT THE
TOP IS THE LIVING ROOM AND
ITS EAST-FACING TERRACE∑
In Residence
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