West of Ovar lies a small cluster of modern houses, with the most renowned being the Avelino Duarte House by Álvaro Siza, located on the main street. Behind it, along a quieter side street, are several other contemporary homes. As you walk through the neighborhood, the striking contrast between the modern architecture and the surrounding traditional Portuguese houses immediately catches your eye.

This House won the Januário Godinho” award from the City Ovar.

The new Sports Hall at the University of Aveiro (UA) is a landmark in the making—one that merges architectural clarity with cultural ambition. Designed by the university’s in-house CampiUA office, led by architect Joaquim Morais Oliveira, the project reflects the architectural identity of the Santiago Campus, balancing functionality with spatial integration. Occupying over 8000 m² in total and 5783 m² of usable area, the hall has been conceived as a multifunctional space not only for sports but also for cultural, academic, and large-scale public events.

Located in the southern sports district of the campus—next to the existing Aristides Hall Pavilion and the athletics track—the new facility completes a constellation of sporting infrastructure while respecting the existing campus masterplan. With seating for 900 people (expandable to 2000 seated and 8000 standing), the structure promises a high degree of flexibility and community use, contributing to the health, well-being, and social cohesion of UA’s vibrant and diverse academic body.

Architecturally, the building upholds the design language of the campus initiated by the celebrated urban plan of Rebello de Andrade & Espírito Santo, known for its rationalist structure and commitment to civic space. The future hall continues this legacy through its proportional massing, coherent material palette, and strategic landscape integration.

This new addition not only enhances UA’s sports and recreational offerings but also signifies its broader role as a cultural and social hub—capable of hosting fairs, exhibitions, and international competitions. By responding to the evolving demands of a dynamic university population, the building becomes both a functional asset and a symbolic investment in the future of campus life.

Once a city turned away from its lagoon, Aveiro has in recent decades reconnected with its natural waterfront. Until the 1980s, the Ria de Aveiro and surrounding salt flats were primarily industrial zones—used for salt production, harvesting aquatic vegetation, and channeling wastewater from nearby factories. However, a significant transformation has taken place, reimagining this space as a valuable environmental and urban asset.

Located at the western edge of Aveiro, the ORIZZONT residential building now enjoys a prime position facing the Ria. Developed as part of the “Polis Aveiro” urban renewal plan, the building’s design emphasizes openness and connection to the landscape. Elevated above the ground, its white concrete frame lifts the structure to reveal public space below and offer unobstructed views toward the water. The building comprises three residential floors, defined by clean lines, natural wood volumes, and generous light exposure.

Inside, the apartments are accessed via two vertical circulation cores, with each level organized into three functional layers: a ground floor lobby area, the main residential units above—designed with living areas facing the sunlit south and tranquil bedrooms oriented north—and a basement level that includes shared amenities such as a lounge and an indoor pool overlooking a private courtyard.
The building occupies a privileged site along the western edge of Aveiro, directly facing the Ria. Its placement and form are the result of the Polis Aveiro urbanization plan, a public initiative aimed at reconnecting the city to its waterfront and enhancing the quality of urban space. As a result, ORIZZONT rises from the ground with a lightness that invites public permeability beneath it—creating a generous base that anticipates views and movement toward the water.

Architecturally, the building is composed of three residential levels supported by a white concrete structure. Above, the upper volumes—clad in wood—seem to seek out the light and embrace the openness of the landscape. The interplay between robust base and warm timber volumes creates a dialogue of mass and levity, solidity and openness.

The interior organization is guided by two vertical circulation cores, efficiently distributing apartments in pairs. The ground level serves as a threshold space—an antechamber that buffers public life from the more private domestic realm. The apartment layouts strategically orient living spaces toward the sunny south and west, maximizing natural light and views, while bedrooms face the quieter, more sheltered quadrant, ensuring comfort and privacy.

Below ground, the basement introduces a subtle layer of communal life. Residents share access to a condominium room and a landscaped patio, both facing a heated swimming pool, reinforcing the building’s role not just as a set of private dwellings but as a community space connected to the evolving urban and natural context of Aveiro.

In all, ORIZZONT represents a new relationship between Aveiro and its water. It’s an architectural statement of openness—both to the landscape and to a new way of urban living.

Located in the expansion area of the University of Aveiro, in Agra do Crasto—a landscape shaped by salt flats and an open orthogonal grid—this residential project emphasizes urban order over typological variety. Here, the focus lies in the careful balance between built space and void, and in the network of relationships that the urban system enables, rather than in the individuality of architectural forms.

The design revisits the earlier university residences built a decade prior. It is a restrained project—spartan in its layout, typology, material palette, and construction approach. The housing typology draws clear references from Russian Constructivism and the traditional collegiate republics of Coimbra.

Connecting the volumes are tunnel-like passages, which break the continuity of the building front while defining the collective and domestic entrances. These transitional spaces mediate between two territories—built and open—and serve as moments of both separation and encounter.

On the eastern façade, brickwork continues to serve as a distinctive material expression of the University. However, unlike the raw, textured surfaces of earlier buildings or the alternating brick patterns of the Mechanical Engineering Department, this brick is more refined—laid in clean vertical joints with nearly invisible horizontal mortar lines.

Facing west, national pine slats clad the surfaces and covered walkways, referencing the local landscape and offering protection from the harsh, salty Atlantic winds. This uniform wooden skin creates a dynamic play of shadow and texture, animated by the projecting shutters that respond to the setting sun.

The Civil Engineering Department building stands as a testament to architectural ingenuity and engineering prowess. Nestled between two pre-existing structures, it adheres to the dimensional guidelines of the southeast side of the grand porticoed walk, a hallmark of the campus’s exterior space. The building’s design is a prolonged parallelepiped, adorned with visible brick-layered patches, with entrances strategically placed on the smaller sides for optimal access.

Inside, the building boasts three distinct levels, each with unique characteristics and purposes. The most striking feature is the intermediate level, which is ingeniously suspended from the level above. This architectural marvel showcases the advanced calculus capabilities applied to a system of pillars and metal beams, which are detached from the façades. The suspension of the intermediate level, achieved through pre-strung cables, is a bold exception to this system.

This innovative design serves as a practical demonstration of civil engineering expertise, further exemplified by the use of prefabricated slates for the pavements and metal plates for the roofing. The architectural atmosphere within the building is enhanced by rooms with double ceiling heights, a result of the intermediate level’s indentation. This building not only serves its functional purpose but also stands as a living exhibit of modern engineering techniques and architectural elegance.

The Department of Biology building, a modern architectural marvel, stands as a testament to innovative design and thoughtful construction. Its parallelepipedic form is strategically oriented perpendicular to the historic urban plan, creating a harmonious dialogue with its surroundings while preserving the scenic views of the nearby river. The building’s exterior is characterized by a uniform visible-brick finish, punctuated by indented spaces that allow for dynamic light play and ventilation.

The design cleverly incorporates both South-facing and North-facing indented spaces, optimizing natural lighting throughout the structure. The South-facing areas bask in abundant sunlight, while the North-facing sections benefit from a softer, more diffused light, ideal for the laboratories housed within. These laboratories feature expansive windows, maximizing the influx of natural light and enhancing the working environment.

The building’s entrance, strategically positioned away from the main road, enhances safety and creates a welcoming approach. The façade’s double height and the interior’s lean-to indentation serve as distinctive architectural signatures, adding depth and character to the structure. Constructed primarily from concrete, the three-story building boasts a robust framework with minimal pillars, offering unparalleled flexibility in the laboratory spaces. This thoughtful design not only meets the functional needs of a modern scientific facility but also elevates the architectural landscape with its elegant and purposeful form.

The Centro de Computação, a striking architectural marvel designed by José Maria Lopo Prata, stands as a testament to innovative design and thoughtful construction. Completed in 1993, this building forms a harmonious U-shaped ensemble with the CEFASI building, adhering to the original morphological plan for the south-eastern side. However, the architect’s recent expansion of the Department of Mathematics, which occupies one “arm” of the U, showcases a bold departure from traditional design norms.

The expansion features a distinctive visible-brick layer that elegantly binds the narrow river-facing façade to a larger structure. This design choice creates a captivating contrast, as the brick does not extend to the ground floor or the staircase areas, allowing for a stunning transparency with glass that invites natural light into spaces that do not require extensive sunlight protection, unlike the computer rooms.

In a daring move, the architect eschewed the conventional use of brick as the dominant material, opting instead for a more arbitrary approach that highlights the expansion as a unique “patch” within the overall structure. This decision breaks away from the regularity of porticoed structures and uniform openings, offering a fresh perspective on architectural design. The Centro de Computação thus stands as a bold statement of architectural creativity, blending functionality with aesthetic innovation.

The Pedestrian Bridge over S. Pedro’s estuary is a striking example of modern architectural ingenuity, designed by João Luis Carrilho da Graça. This bridge elegantly connects the areas of Santiago and Agra do Crasto, which are divided by a branch of the Aveiro lagoon. Prioritizing ecological considerations, the bridge caters exclusively to bicycles and pedestrians, a rare but forward-thinking choice in the region.

The design features a continuous and horizontal concrete gangway, gracefully supported by a double metallic-profile Warren-type beam. This beam rests on slender, transparent pillars, giving the structure a sense of lightness and fluidity as it spans the estuary. The irregular arrangement of the beams adds a dynamic quality to the bridge, enhancing its visual appeal and creating a sense of movement.

Future plans to cover the bridge with colorful canvas at varying intervals promise to further animate its presence in the landscape, making it not only a functional crossing but also a vibrant landmark. This architectural marvel not only shortens the journey between the two sides of the campus but also stands as a testament to innovative and sustainable design.