Tiago Do Vale Arquitectos

The Caveman

The Caveman

The Caveman

Tiago do Vale Arquitectos

PHOTOGRAPHY
João Morgado

ARCHITECTURE TEAM
Tiago do Vale, Maria João Araújo, with Adele Pinna, Camille Martin

ARCHITECTURE
Tiago do Vale Architects

CLIENT
The Caveman

BUDGET
$10K - 50K

PROGRAM
Retail

RETRO FURNITURE
Vintage Alternative Store

CONSTRUCTION AREA
667 t2 (62 m2)

CONSTRUCTION ARU
Arquitectura e Reabilitação Urbana

AREA
0 sqft - 1000 sqft

YEAR
2017

LOCATION
Ponte de Lima, Portugal

TYPE
Commercial › Retail

The Caveman
The Caveman

Tribute to Materiality Having as a starting point a shoe store built in the late 90’s, this new commercial space -which targets a very specific (and demanding) market with a wide range of products- required a project designed to have great flexibility in the presentation of the products, generate a space with a strong, recognizable and repeatable image, while achieving it at a very low cost.

The Caveman
The Caveman

The pre-existent drywall false ceiling was demolished and the wallpaper on the walls removed.

Lifting the degraded floating floors revealed a concrete subfloor in great condition. A concrete column was hidden behind four floor-to-ceiling mirrors.

The Caveman
The Caveman

Returning the space to its most raw characteristics exposed its most strong features: a rediscovered ceiling height and a phenomenal transparency to the street.

To achieve the store’s goals, the approach had to be very pragmatic, based on a simple gesture that could organize the space in its entirety and resourcing to cost-effective solutions that wouldn’t require expensive finishes or maintenance.

The resulting design is an ode to the value of the materials as they are: their frankness, their natural image and their intrinsic qualities.

The Caveman
The Caveman
The Caveman

The exposed ceilings, perimetral walls and infrastructures are painted black, toning down their presence in the background.

A large “U” shaped surface warmly embraces the visitors, serving as the product showcase and, through its deconstruction, designing the store counter.

The yellow cement wood boards are perforated in a pattern that allows the product display area to be infinitely reconfigured with sucupira wood pegs -serving both as shelves and hangers.

The Caveman
The Caveman
The Caveman

There are minimal cuts to the boards and no leftovers.

These boards are supported by a galvanized steel structure that reinforces the “U” shape and deemphasizes the irregular perimeter of the store behind it.

The geometry of this plane relates to the perimetral walls in such a way that it allows for a dressing room, storage and working spaces behind it.

The Caveman
The Caveman

Hanging from steel cables, along one of the glass store sides, there are four displays, constructed from the same cement wood boards and galvanized steel profiles used before.

All in all, the entire store is composed by four materials, in their raw, pure state: pre-existent concrete, cement wood boards, galvanized steel and wood.

The Caveman
The Caveman

With great simplicity it was possible to produce a very rich, complex space.

Though each part may appear crude when regarded individually, their ensemble results in a welcoming place of great warmth and finish, defined by the qualities of the honest, exposed materials, the carefully crafted details, its wonderful transparency and its extremely judicious lighting.

The Caveman


The Caveman
The Caveman
The Caveman
The Caveman
The Caveman


The Caveman
The Caveman
The Caveman
The Caveman


The Caveman
The Caveman


The Caveman
The Caveman

Tiago Do Vale Arquitectos
T +351 253 295027
Tiago Do Vale Arquitectos
R. Dom Frei Caetano Brandão 121, 4700-031 Braga, Portugal