Ruína, entre Recuperação e Criação. Intervenção no conjunto edificado da Casa Nobre do Cais Novo

Abstract

This investigation, of a theoretical and practical nature, takes as its object of study a ruined built complex, the Casa Nobre do Cais Novo and its warehouses, in Porto, and the opportunity to develop a strategy for the revitalization of the urban context in which it is inscribed, articulated with a project of reconstruction, adaptation and reuse of the existing structures. From the analysis and interpretation of the pre-existence and the urban framework in which it is located, the research raises the issue of housing, both in terms of scarcity and in the inadequacy of current morpho-typological solutions when confronted with a society in permanent reconfiguration. This reflection reveals the need to conceive housing as an open structure, capable of responding to social, economic and cultural transformations, while drawing on national and international references that explore new ways of living and propose innovative strategies for the design of domestic space. The theoretical investigation is articulated with the practical dimension of the project, which proposes a housing solution guided by flexibility and adaptability to a diverse public with constantly evolving needs. The proposal addresses the physical limitations imposed by the topography of the site and the degradation of the ruin, transforming them into opportunities for spatial redefinition. In this sense, the intervention aims not only to recover the historical memory of the built complex, but also to integrate contemporary uses capable of restoring social and urban vitality to the riverside front, affirming rehabilitation as an exercise of critical continuity between preservation and innovation.