ESTORIL SOL RESIDENCE - Gonalo Byrne, 2010

Estoril Sol Residence, is a residential hybrid designed by the architect Gonalo Byrne.
It was a controversial and difficult process. It is located where previously was Hotel
Estoril-Sol, an icon of 1960's Portuguese modernism (which was demolished). This
new project raised concerns of intervention ethics regarding the transformation of the
territory and the confrontation with the public memory of the place.
In the XIX century this land was bought and it was built a palace, drawn by an architect
of the school of William Morris. From this palace along it is build a park called Parque
Palmela. It was a rich natural park that grown until the coastal area. But with the
construction of the train line, this connection of the valley, the river and the palace is
cut. Later the gap becomes stronger with the appearance of this road. With time this
gap became even bigger and the relation was absolutely cutted.
This was the biggest challenge in the project, this relation between the valley, the river
and the history of the place.
The biggest problem was the implantation and its relation with the hill, creating a visual
barrier. But it is believed that without the hotel the hill looks unfinished and without
balance, exposing a concrete wall to the river. This way, the project tries to solve this
area in the best way possible, creating a softer hill and using green spaces around it
and in front of the river, for a better relation and transition.
The second challenge was the integration with the scale and type of urban edifications.
It clearly shows its difference with the rest and its scales. So the game of voids and
volumes of the building try to create a better relation, giving space for big green areas
to penetrate the building and create public space. Other way to create a softer relation
of scale and integration with the hill and the Park is the use of glass and transparency
that tries to reintegrate the building.
The new Estoril-Sol is a building that defies tradition to propose new possibilities, a
renewed experience of place. It's a distinctive landmark that emphasizes its visual
importance and sense of hierarchy. It's a compact hybrid that relates nature and
dimension, being a dominant figure over the landscape.
Harmonious or contrasting, this is an architect that denies limitations of style or the
representation or achetypes to suggest crytical sense of modernity.
It has 20 floors and 300 rooms and 120 apartments (from 2 to 5 rooms each). The
construction of this building was thought to be flexible, which is easily seen in the
inside. It gves different housing possibilities and varieties, with the use of metal
structure and plasterboard
FUNDAAO D. LUIS I - Centro Cultural de Cascais, 2000
The building is a rehabilitation of an old convent. It opened in 2000 and it is a cultural
centre with main focus in visual arts. Besides the exposition rooms, it has an
auditorium and an interior courtyard (typical convent plan)
The convent is from the XVII century, created for the First Portuguese School of
Philosophy. After some time, with the extinction of the religious orders the building was
abandoned and left to ruin. In the XIX century a viscount built is palace in there. Then it
became property of the Municipality of Cascais and its recuperation started in 1994.
Part of the building had archeological excavations, delaying its rehabilitation.
CASA/PALACIO CONDES DE CASTRO GUIMARAES
This used to be a Palace of the Conde of Castro Guimaraes. In 1924 he died and left
his palace to the Municipality of Cascais. It opened as a museum in 1931. You can visit
his house in the tower (Torre de S. Sebastio) and all the decorations, pieces of art and
book collection that he left has a collection. Now it's Museum and a Public Library and
it also has a garden around the tower and a chapel.

The Tower was first build in 1900 and it has grown has an holiday palace, with an
eclectic style. It uses chimneys reminding medieval palaces, fortified towers, windows
similar with the gothic period, stoneworks like the manuelin style, dome with oriental
style and some windows and balconies inspired in the Renaissance. This mix of
diferent styles and influences creates a scenario of a castle and fantasy, relating with
the desire of the epoch, the Romantic period.
These sensations are also enhanced by the relation with the garden spaces and the
sea around, which touched its base.
In the collection of the museum, you mostly can see painting from the XVI to the XX
century, sculpture from the XVIII to the XX, jewelry from the XVIII and XIX, furniture
from the XVII and XVIII, porcelain, armory, archeology, books and other decoration
things.