Dezeen Magazine

Wooden trusses support new mezzanines inside remodelled stone building by Corpo Atelier

Architecture studio Corpo Atelier has restructured an old stone outbuilding in a rural area of northern Portugal, adding a bulky wooden framework behind its thick masonry walls (+ slideshow).

Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier

Corpo Atelier carried out the refurbishment on a dilapidated building in Sernancelhe, a municipality in northern Portugal, to create a family home. The project was named Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls.

Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier

All that remained of the original building were four thick stone walls. The architects added a new wooden roof structure and a series of interior partitions, framed by chunky timber columns and beams.

Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier

They also increased the height of the upper storey by adding stone blocks to the existing walls, then repointed the whole building to harmonise the two different ages of masonry.

Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier

Wooden beams and trusses have been left exposed on the underside of the roof. They connect with a system of new floor beams and columns that subdivide the interior, create three mezzanine levels and frame a staircase with a cupboard beneath its treads.

Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier

"Inside, the wood structure that supports [the roof] is expanded vertically, trespassing the house in all its dimension, both dividing and 'hierarchising' the space," said the architects.

Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier

"The habitable areas then occupy the interstices of this clearly defined geometry of wood pillars and beams," they added.

Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier

The timber staircase sits in the centre of the plan. It leads up to a landing with a white railing that overlooks the open-plan living space on the ground floor. Doorways to the right and left lead off this platform into two double bedrooms.

Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier

The steps continue up from the landing to the family bathroom, where the roof beams fan out across the glossy white sloping ceiling.

Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier

Externally, the new roof is covered in terracotta tiles, as is a porch that provides the house's entrance. Irregularly shaped pieces of stone were also added around the perimeter, creating a patio between the building and the surrounding garden.

Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier

Photography is by Ricardo Oliveira Alves.


Project credits:

Architecture: Corpo Atelier
Design team: Filipe Paixão
Construction: Window to the Future and Opus Nobel Energia

Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier
Site plan – click for larger image
Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier
Ground floor plan – click for larger image
Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier
First floor plan – click for larger image
Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier
Section one – click for larger image
Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier
Section two – click for larger image
Wood Structure Inside Stone Walls by Corpo Atelier
Section three – click for larger image