Armazem Cowork
ARMAZEM COWORK
oitoo
ARCHITECTS
oitoo
MANUFACTURERS
Graphisoft, Aleluia Cerâmicas, Amorim, Ikea, Saint-gobain, Isea
CLIENT
Porto Novo SA
ENGINEERING
NCREP
PLOT SIZE
630.0 m2
LOCATION
Porto, Portugal
CATEGORY
Refurbishment, Cowork Interiors
Text description provided by architect.
An old warehouse in Porto which was vacant for 44 years, with an anonymous ground floor underneath a residential multi-storey building, in a neighbourhood slowly abandoned by commerce and businesses in the last decades.
oitoo brought it back to life as armazem cowork.This project is a reflection on the hidden qualities of often unused ground floor spaces and showcases the design methodology potentiality as a catalyst of reactivation.
The project hopes to demonstrate the underlying qualities and opportunities of unused ground floors and remake the collective opinion of these spaces often tainted by a poor public perception as unsafe and unfit for inhabiting or working.
If these spaces remain unoccupied, street life will continue to be absent.
Walking on a sidewalk amidst neglected, empty stores is a harrowing experience, and emptiness breeds poor use of public space, resulting in disquieting, seedy streets.
The change of use from former warehouse to co-working office will hopefully contribute to the reactivation of the street level as a lively space.
A buffer space mediates street and working areas and acts as a display for businesses inside; in the back, a surprising garden allows for perfect outdoor work or leisure moments.
