The atelier occupies an existing space that once belonged to another economy of space, anonymous, slightly provisional. Rather than erase that condition, the project works from within it. A landscape practice settles inside, bringing with it other preoccupations. The intervention is light and precise where office work and vegetation can coexist.
The floor establishes the first gesture. Green tiles spread across the surface, punctuated by scattered yellow squares that resemble flowers fallen from an absent garden. The pattern is systematic yet strangely casual—an abstract meadow translated into ceramic. It introduces an unexpected optimism. Flowers appear where neutrality would normally prevail, transforming the office into a small cultivated landscape.
Above, the ceiling responds with an opposite move. Thin metal lines cross the space diagonally, forming a loose geometric web. They draw in the air what the tiles suggest on the ground: a second, lighter structure that floats overhead. The lines do not conceal the ceiling’s roughness; instead they acknowledge it. The project assembles inexpensive elements with a certain joy—a quiet, cheerful arte povera.
Between these two layers—the tiled meadow below and the metallic constellation above—the office unfolds with minimal interruption. Strong columns and opaque walls keep their presence, occasionally wrapped in reflective asphaltic screen that multiply fragments of the room. Light enters through the deep formal window and moves across tiles, plants, and desks. The architecture avoids completion; it simply establishes a framework in which everyday work unfolds.
Team:
Architects: fala atelier
Project team: fala (filipe magalhães, ana luisa soares, ahmed belkhodja, lera samovich, joão carlos lopes)
Contractor: Maxrenova
Photographer: Francisco Ascensão
