Site landmark, Honorable mention
International architecture ideas competition
This landmark is conceived as a striking vertical element contrasted against the horizontal lines of the landscape and the horizon.
Sagres was originally an important site for sailors who left or returned from long journeys at sea. The intervention mimics the shape of a lighthouse, inserted into the rocks, in order to make it visible mainly from the sea. The building develops as a path that begins on the land, then penetrates the rocks and finally ends in the water. Visitors, therefore, experience all the main elements of the site. At first, the only noticeable object is the visitor center, cut in half by the path which goes straight to the belvedere.
The belvedere is the last viewing point in which it is possible to have a complete view of the landscape. It is here that the path develops around the perimeter of the tower and reveals the lighthouse of Cape St. Vincent on the right side, the vast open ocean on the front and on the left is the Sagres Fortress in the distance. Immediately after this, the path takes the visitor down a long staircase where the views are selected and randomized, and the openings get less frequent until eventually disappearing completely as the tower enters the rocks.
After a period of complete darkness, light is seen again at the bottom of the stairs where the cave meets the water.
Here the water is not only seen but can also be touched. In this space, visitors have the opportunity to sit on the rocks or dive into the water and completely immerse themselves in the three simple elements that make up this site: sky, rock and the incredible Atlantic Ocean
