The Foz do Douro apartment is located in one of Porto’s first seismic-resistant towers, built in the 1960s. The purpose of the project was to reduce the over-compartmentalization, common of that time, focusing instead on bigger, more open living spaces that better suit a modern and flexible way of life.

The new layout includes two full bathrooms, keeps the three original bedrooms, and expands the kitchen, improving its connection to the living room with a wider opening. This interior organization ensures the necessary privacy for the more personal areas while encourages a closer relationship between the kitchen and the living room, making it easier to enjoy the shared though separated spaces with others. In the living room, the structural constraints were used creatively to form a “tripartite arcade,” dividing the space into three parts: the kitchen passage, the door to the bedroom area, and the niche for the TV unit.

On the construction side, all the new carpentry was harmonized, and existing materials like the pine wood flooring and marble were used. Light colors were chosen for the walls, carpentry, and microcement in the bathrooms, based on the client’s preference. This helped make the apartment feel bigger and lighter.
In the end, by keeping things simple and focusing on a thoughtful design, the apartment was transformed into a more spacious, functional, and comfortable home, blending seamlessly with the building’s history and the time it was built.