Alcatel Head Office
ALCATEL HEAD OFFICE
Frederico Valsassina Arquitectos
CATEGORY
Institutional Buildings
ARCHITECTS
Frederico Valsassina Arquitectos
PHOTOGRAPHS
Fernando Guerra | FG+SG
AREA
11051.0 m2
LOCATION
Portugal
YEAR
2009
Text description provided by architect.
The building appears as an isolated block, morphologically linked to the ones around it, with a distinctively contemporary architectural language.
Using a volumetrical speech similar to the adjoining volumes, the new building is carved in order to soften and project its image to the outside. The form is enhanced as a project-asset, contributing for the intrinsic dynamics that is intended for the global proposal.
The two levels give place to one, through the “folding up” of the entrance level. The new volume releases itself from the ground, as a business card for anyone who enters.
Suspended over the void, it directs people to the entrance, which is made to the North over the void that gives access to the parking lot.
The rotation of the upper volume translates, on the base level, a negative that directly exposes the parking lot, allowing construction to mix with a green protection area.
The building is intimately connected with its natural surroundings, taking advantage of it as a barrier against external agents.
In terms of materials, the solution is as restrained as possible to ensure the sobriety of the whole. Therefore, a limited range of materials is introduced in order to emphasize the formal clearance required: white spread surfaces and screen-printed glass are assumed as predominant materials.
