REFURBISHMENT AND ADAPTATION OF THE OLD COURTHOUSE INTO AN ARTS AND CRAFTS CENTRE
The intervention consisted in the rehabilitation the old Albufeira Administrative Court house, with reference to its original construction in the third quarter of the 19th century, adapting the existing building into an Arts and Crafts Centre. The building will be dedicated to activities for the dissemination of local arts, techniques, knowledge and craft products, integrating the components of information, exhibition, training and incubator in the context of local and regional artistic and craft production.
Before the intervention, the building was abandoned and in a poor state of conservation. The intervention intended to settle the heritage and architectural values and the memory of the place with contemporary technical, comfort and functional adaptability requirements.
The flexibility of the new exhibition and workshop rooms makes it possible to accommodate a diversity of contents and activities scheduled for the Arts and Crafts. Service spaces and assisted accesses were introduced as well as a mezzanine floor in response to the new programming and functional requirements.
A square patio was created in the building's courtyard as a structural element in the articulation between the various floors of the building, ensuring ideal conditions for natural ventilation and light for all the spaces on the lower floor.
The wood, the painted brick, the local limestone, and the textured white surfaces, as well as the glazing bricks that filters the light, seek to recover themes and features of the Mediterranean architecture with the necessary contemporary approach.
