For Vânia Brito Fernandes, an architect from Algarve, it was love at first sight, so much so that she wanted to make number 53, Rua Almeida Garrett, her address. Aware of the challenge of recovering a historic and rare building in the city of Faro, in the Art Nouveau style, with Art Deco decorative elements, but also of what the rescue of this century-old heritage represented, the architect moved forward.

PAr – Plataforma de Arquitectura, a studio that integrates with partners Joana Carmo Simões and Susana dos Santos Rodrigues, signed the project for the renovation and expansion of the building without compromising its identity and using traditional knowledge and materials from the region.
The volumetry of the building and the distribution were maintained. The nuclear house is on the ground floor, consisting of an equipped kitchen, living and dining rooms and two studios (T0 and T1). The well was preserved on the patio, and a vegetable garden was planted, where cabbage and broccoli had already flourished. On the upper floor are two more bedrooms and a standard room, transformed into a kitchen and multipurpose room (T2). This is where the swimming pool is installed, in the same place where, in the past, there was the Horta tank at Colégio dos Jesuítas. The white of the walls contrasts with the ivy and the flowerbeds that flank the walls of the building.

The colour palette respected the original tones of the interiors, in old rose, white and with black and burgundy details. The decoration is minimalist and welcoming, with the furniture designed by PAr standing out, as well as the lighting, which contrasts with the reconstituted elements of the period, such as the doors and windows, the ironwork worked with organic designs, the stained glass, the plaster friezes and finials, the plasterwork on the walls, the tiles with geometric or floral motifs, the hydraulic tiles, the marble with pink veins, the brass hardware. For insulation, the architects chose cork.

Casa 1923 gained versatility, and the environments adapted to everyday life or work needs. The use of materials – tiles, stones, wood – and the use of local suppliers and artisans were decisive for the project's sustainability.
This orientation in all PAr– Plataforma de Arquitectura projects earned him the Archiczer Awards Jury Winner and the Best for Green Practices & Sustainability Award from Condé Nast Johansens.

The result of this recovery was so rewarding that, at the end of the summer, PAr - Plataforma de Arquitectura would move to the ground floor and make this its home as well.