Articles Recognitions

Spotlight: Teresa Barbosa

 She joined the Fragmentos team in 2005 and in 2017 took on the role of project coordinator. Two years later, Teresa became an associate architect. Read the full bio here.

 

You joined Fragmentos 18 years ago and have closely followed the evolution and growth of the studio. How do you see this growth and how has it influenced the adoption of new procedures and ways of working?

I am actually one of the oldest people at Fragmentos, but it is important to understand that this more accentuated growth is relatively recent, considering the life of the studio. By my nature, I was perhaps one of the most sceptical about this growth Not because I didn't believe in the capacity of what Fragmentos had become, but for fear of losing the family atmosphere that is so unique to the studio. But like everything else in my life, once the first resistance to change is overcome, you find a natural capacity to adapt and let yourself go with the flow (laughs). I am a very curious person, and this curiosity has been the engine that "overcomes" some of that initial resistance. It is with great enthusiasm that today I see the team growing in such a solid way. This growth has given me the opportunity to coordinate Equipa 05, which is made up of another five talented people at different stages of their training and career, which enriches the way we all work. The new procedures, to which we are still adapting, were introduced precisely to speed up the planning and production of a growing team, but also to allow the studio to remain on the crest of a wave of technological advances that is proving exponential. I'm talking about design tools such as REVIT and BIM, which I honestly no longer aspire to master, but whose evolution I'd very much like to be able to keep up with within the studio.

Equipa 05 has been responsible for the majority of the studio's medium-sized housing projects. How do you see the relationship with private clients in comparison to that with property developers?

The relationship with a private client and with these medium-sized housing projects is in itself quite challenging. Each project is tailor-made to the client's needs in search of a unique and original result, and this client is usually the end user. It therefore becomes more personal and the interaction is direct, meaning we need to get to know the client better and respond to their needs, preferences and dreams. With a property developer, the relationship is on a different level. The best solutions are explored to meet market demand, which means you seek to systematise solutions and really consider the best type of construction, with the economic viability of the solution always taken into account. Excel spreadsheets take on a greater role, with direct implications on the success of the investment!

Do you prefer designing an entirely new project or rehabilitating an old space?

I like both, but perhaps I would opt for rehabilitation because it presupposes a pre-existence, a starting point, even when what is finally taken from that origin is just a single stone. The recreation of a space, depending on its heritage interest, requires some degree of in-depth study of its history. A rehabilitation project presents the challenge of finding that fine balance between respect for what was, for what still is, and openness to novelty. Rehabilitation can establish alliances with new construction, through the stamp of contemporaneity. All this, in the right measure, mix and time, is not always obvious and requires precise control, both at the design stage and later with the surprises that naturally arise during the construction stage. I would say that unlike new construction, where the architect's intervention is more demanding in the early phases (exploring the concept, designing the spaces, etc.), in rehabilitation, the result of the project is closely related to the architect's relationship with the work on an ongoing basis, and their openness and investment throughout the process.

What are the three projects that have most challenged you?

Curiously (or maybe not) they were all rehabilitation works. One was the rehabilitation of a building in Rua do Salitre, in Lisbon. It was a pre-pombaline building, which had already been used as a school, among other things. The programme involved the creation of six apartments of different typologies. Working with the structures team, who from the outset showed an enormous respect for the original construction, together with the owner (a private individual), equally dedicated and interested, allowed us to achieve a final result in which I am very proud to have participated. 

I would also mention the rehabilitation of a residential condominium in Sesimbra, which involved taking advantage of a pre-existing "skeleton" which had never obtained a license for use. The intervention didn't change its use, but by taking advantage of a large part of the structure, it was possible to completely change the configuration of the 28 apartments whose typologies, over the years, had become inadequate. The topography of the hillside and the implantation of the construction also allowed us to play with the roofs (gardens) and interior patios (use of exterior spaces and natural light), which brought an enormous added value to the final product. The biggest challenge was adjusting the project to the reality of the construction site, as the demolitions brought some unforeseen consequences. We were forced to constantly monitor and make adjustments that were more radical than those which normally occur in an exclusively new construction project.

Finally, a project that is still under development, a residential condominium in Marvila. This is an intervention on a plot of land where there are two large warehouses and a "chalet" residential building, all vacant. The terrain has a big difference in elevation from the street, and both the accesses and the implementation of the programme required different studies, from the proposal for the complete rehabilitation of the warehouses to the current phase that only involves the rehabilitation of the pre-existing residential building and new construction for the remaining housing.

 

 She joined the Fragmentos team in 2005 and in 2017 took on the role of project coordinator. Two years later, Teresa became an associate architect. Read the full bio here.

 

You joined Fragmentos 18 years ago and have closely followed the evolution and growth of the studio. How do you see this growth and how has it influenced the adoption of new procedures and ways of working?

I am actually one of the oldest people at Fragmentos, but it is important to understand that this more accentuated growth is relatively recent, considering the life of the studio. By my nature, I was perhaps one of the most sceptical about this growth Not because I didn't believe in the capacity of what Fragmentos had become, but for fear of losing the family atmosphere that is so unique to the studio. But like everything else in my life, once the first resistance to change is overcome, you find a natural capacity to adapt and let yourself go with the flow (laughs). I am a very curious person, and this curiosity has been the engine that "overcomes" some of that initial resistance. It is with great enthusiasm that today I see the team growing in such a solid way. This growth has given me the opportunity to coordinate Equipa 05, which is made up of another five talented people at different stages of their training and career, which enriches the way we all work. The new procedures, to which we are still adapting, were introduced precisely to speed up the planning and production of a growing team, but also to allow the studio to remain on the crest of a wave of technological advances that is proving exponential. I'm talking about design tools such as REVIT and BIM, which I honestly no longer aspire to master, but whose evolution I'd very much like to be able to keep up with within the studio.

Equipa 05 has been responsible for the majority of the studio's medium-sized housing projects. How do you see the relationship with private clients in comparison to that with property developers?

The relationship with a private client and with these medium-sized housing projects is in itself quite challenging. Each project is tailor-made to the client's needs in search of a unique and original result, and this client is usually the end user. It therefore becomes more personal and the interaction is direct, meaning we need to get to know the client better and respond to their needs, preferences and dreams. With a property developer, the relationship is on a different level. The best solutions are explored to meet market demand, which means you seek to systematise solutions and really consider the best type of construction, with the economic viability of the solution always taken into account. Excel spreadsheets take on a greater role, with direct implications on the success of the investment!

Do you prefer designing an entirely new project or rehabilitating an old space?

I like both, but perhaps I would opt for rehabilitation because it presupposes a pre-existence, a starting point, even when what is finally taken from that origin is just a single stone. The recreation of a space, depending on its heritage interest, requires some degree of in-depth study of its history. A rehabilitation project presents the challenge of finding that fine balance between respect for what was, for what still is, and openness to novelty. Rehabilitation can establish alliances with new construction, through the stamp of contemporaneity. All this, in the right measure, mix and time, is not always obvious and requires precise control, both at the design stage and later with the surprises that naturally arise during the construction stage. I would say that unlike new construction, where the architect's intervention is more demanding in the early phases (exploring the concept, designing the spaces, etc.), in rehabilitation, the result of the project is closely related to the architect's relationship with the work on an ongoing basis, and their openness and investment throughout the process.

What are the three projects that have most challenged you?

Curiously (or maybe not) they were all rehabilitation works. One was the rehabilitation of a building in Rua do Salitre, in Lisbon. It was a pre-pombaline building, which had already been used as a school, among other things. The programme involved the creation of six apartments of different typologies. Working with the structures team, who from the outset showed an enormous respect for the original construction, together with the owner (a private individual), equally dedicated and interested, allowed us to achieve a final result in which I am very proud to have participated. 

I would also mention the rehabilitation of a residential condominium in Sesimbra, which involved taking advantage of a pre-existing "skeleton" which had never obtained a license for use. The intervention didn't change its use, but by taking advantage of a large part of the structure, it was possible to completely change the configuration of the 28 apartments whose typologies, over the years, had become inadequate. The topography of the hillside and the implantation of the construction also allowed us to play with the roofs (gardens) and interior patios (use of exterior spaces and natural light), which brought an enormous added value to the final product. The biggest challenge was adjusting the project to the reality of the construction site, as the demolitions brought some unforeseen consequences. We were forced to constantly monitor and make adjustments that were more radical than those which normally occur in an exclusively new construction project.

Finally, a project that is still under development, a residential condominium in Marvila. This is an intervention on a plot of land where there are two large warehouses and a "chalet" residential building, all vacant. The terrain has a big difference in elevation from the street, and both the accesses and the implementation of the programme required different studies, from the proposal for the complete rehabilitation of the warehouses to the current phase that only involves the rehabilitation of the pre-existing residential building and new construction for the remaining housing.

 

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