Rehabilitation

Recovery does not take place only in the therapy room. Although therapy is central to rehabilitation, it occupies only part of a patient’s day. Able Hospital extends opportunities to practice everyday activities beyond treatment spaces, into the corridors, ward living areas, and rooftop garden. Sooyoung Choi Sooyoung Choi Located near a major intersection in Suwon, South Korea, the project converted an existing commercial building into a rehabilitation hospital. To improve visibility from the street, red terracotta tiles were added selectively to the existing gray granite facade. Retaining the granite wherever possible avoided unnecessary replacement while considering construction costs and material consumption. Sooyoung... More

In Porto's Campo Alegre, Openbook Architecture has transformed a 1982 office building into a contemporary multi-tenant workplace of 10,000 sqm. A new curtain wall with vertical and horizontal fins calibrated to each orientation, a daylit courtyard where escalators once stood and a rooftop terrace over the Douro reshape the building without erasing its identity. Caption The Mutual Building stands on the corner of Rua Gonçalo Sampaio and Rua do Campo Alegre, in the Lordelo do Ouro district of Porto. Designed in 1982 by the architects José Pulido Valente, Nicolau Brandão and Ricardo Figueiredo, it was occupied for decades by the insurance company AXA/Ageas. Acquired by Osborne+Co Portugal, it has now been transform... More

At the intersection of three urban zones — Laeken's old neighborhoods to the east and west, and the maritime district to the south — Dieudonné Lefèvre Street serves as a boundary, adjacent to Tour & Taxis park. This mixed context, both residential and industrial, is marked by a large warehouse next to the project, framed by a blank wall. The project, oriented north-south, maximizes natural light while preventing overheating. The former apartment of three consecutive rooms is reimagined as a two-bedroom space, focused on its connection to a private garden. Stijn Bollaert Stijn Bollaert Stijn Bollaert Stijn Bollaert A key move involves lowering the courtyard to match the apartment's level, t... More

Casa Pires is a historic 19th-century building in Olhão that has played a central role in the municipality over time. Caption Caption Caption When it was entrusted to us, it was in an advanced state of degradation, requiring a deep structural intervention. Caption Caption Caption The project resulted in a full rehabilitation of the building, respecting its architectural identity and historical memory. Two spacious and bright four-bedroom apartments were created, preserving and reinterpreting existing heritage elements. The ground floor was reorganized to accommodate retail spaces, equipped with improved functional and support conditions. Caption Caption Caption The result combines prese... More

Calle Xàtiva 20 stands at the edge of Valencia’s historic Ciutat Vella, forming part of the urban frame of the València Nord train station—often the first façade visitors see on arrival. Built in 1925 and later converted to offices (from 1975 onward), the building accumulated interior partitions and incompatible additions that obscured its residential logic. JSJ Arquitectos, German Cabo JSJ Arquitectos, German Cabo JSJ Arquitectos, German Cabo The commission required transforming the building’s former use into a specialized 15-unit apartment-hotel that could meet contemporary hospitality standards while complying with strict heritage protections and the Special Plan for the Protection o... More

This project concerns the renovation of the Plaine des Sports in Périgueux, centred around the grandstand of the rugby stadium known as Rongieras. This sports esplanade is located along the Isle River, at the foot of the hills overlooking the watercourse, within an alluvial plain that also hosts the SNCF railway station as well as commercial and office buildings. Agnès Clotis Agnès Clotis This location, in a natural depression that frames the Rongieras grandstand from the city to the east and the hills to the west, makes this facility a major landmark in both the urban and landscape setting. The grandstand, positioned as a focal point, in turn offers from its seating tiers or reception areas sweeping views of... More

An insalubrious street-level space. A studio to be fitted in with precision. elua® imagines their smallest project yet, reinterpreting this urban apartment as a fully integrated, ultra-contemporary space. This is Fenêtres sur rue. elua® Although Fenêtres sur rue is the studio’s smallest project, it is by no means the least complex in terms of design challenges. How can one rehabilitate a dark, substandard street-level space into a functional living environment? How can a compact space be expanded without an extension? How can natural light be brought in when additional openings are impossible? A program of housing suitable for a student or a young couple. elua® Panels of cut-out shapes and different... More

This project consists of the rehabilitation and extension of a building in Lisbon’s Campo de Ourique district. While preserving the original architectural character, the intervention sought to adapt the building and its apartments to contemporary standards of comfort and functionality. GV+A GV+A GV+A Our team was responsible for the execution project, construction and site supervision, ensuring that design intentions were fully translated into built reality. The process was guided by great respect for the building’s historical identity. Key objectives included optimizing construction costs, improving the spatial quality of the interiors, and re-establishing a closer relationship between the façade and the... More

This proposal aims to rehabilitate a residential building located at Praça Duque de Saldanha No. 11-11C, cornering Avenida Praia da Vitória No. 49-67, in order to adapt it to current comfort, safety, and accessibility standards. The goal is to modernize the building without compromising its existing structure and historical memory. As the rehabilitation falls within a protected zone under Lisbon’s Municipal Master Plan (PDM), the façade and any other notable heritage elements will be preserved. Caption The proposal is based on four key intervention principles: Excavation, Retaining, and Construction of 2 Underground Parking Floors   Access will be via Avenida Praia da Vitória, sacrificing dire... More

The Grande Nef at the Île-des-Vannes sports complex in Saint-Ouen-sur-Seine is a structure originally completed in 1971 by architects Anatole Kopp, Lucien Metrich, and Pierre Chazanoff. Characterised by its parabolic geometry and cable-tensioned roof, the building experienced technical obsolescence and hygrothermal failures, leading to its closure in 2018. Chatillon Architectes led the recent rehabilitation, addressing these deficiencies to prepare the facility for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.   Antoine Mercusot for Chatillon Architectes ❌︎ Remove Applied Products block will be inserted here   Structural preservation and embodied carbon The rehabilitation strategy prioritised retaining the origin... More

Our architecture studio was entrusted with the rehabilitation design of one of Porto’s most iconic and historically significant buildings. This classified property demanded a highly rigorous and respectful approach to its architectural recovery. Architect Selection Process Ricardo Tedim Cruz After the building came under the administration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (M.A.I.), a public tender was launched for its rehabilitation. Several architecture and engineering firms submitted proposals, with Utopia Studio’s submission being selected for its quality, sensitivity to context, and clarity of vision for the project. Historical Context and Building Condition Originally designed by the architect Júlio de Br... More

The rehabilitation project for this historic building proposed an approach that respects its authenticity and architectural value while adapting it to the demands of contemporary living. This intervention is not merely a restoration but a careful reinterpretation of the space, where tradition and innovation harmoniously coexist. Francisco Nogueira - Architectural Photography Given the significant interior deterioration, a deep structural reconfiguration was undertaken, preserving the building’s identity while ensuring superior safety, health, and accessibility standards. The transformation of the attic into a mansard floor allowed for a visually balanced integration with the façade composition, improving the unit’s... More

The intervention in the existing building, constructed in the 1930s during the modernist period in Portugal, was based on a profound reconfiguration of the interior layout and its expansion through the addition of three new residential floors and two underground levels for parking. Ivo Tavares Studio – Architectural Photography The integration of the new floors into the building’s compositional structure stemmed from a detailed analysis of the original design, found in historical archives, which initially envisioned five residential floors instead of the four that existed. Thus, the project proposed reinstating this "lost" floor while preserving the original design, restoring the balance of proportions between the base and... More