Purpose: This research seeks to provide methodological bases for the identification, documentation and critical reflection of good practices of architectural design in built heritage. These are applied explicitly to the School of Porto architects, which express a high sense of pedagogy and community practice in this field. The methodological approach defines the selection criteria for a georeferenced inventory and the procedures for in-depth analysis of adaptive reuse strategies.Design/methodology/approach: The works included in the inventory were selected according to geographical, chronological, typological, qualitative and quantitative criteria. The cases chosen for in-depth analysis have been studied along four thematic axes to dissect all the intervention processes (previous state, design/construction and final state). This approach is supported by a cross-analysis of different sources (oral, written, graphic) and using drawing as a fundamental research tool.Findings: The research has collected and disseminated up to 150 works by 44 architects, providing a comprehensive portrait of heritage intervention by the School of Porto over the past decades. The selection of 22 buildings for in-depth documentation reveals a particular sensibility toward the cultural values through a case-by-case approach based in deep knowledge of the preexisting context and the introduction of contemporary additions in continuity and harmonious relation with the environmental and sociocultural context.Originality/value: This work provides a novel methodology suitable for further extension and adaptation to other case studies, as a first contribution to a more comprehensive “Atlas of Architectural Design in Built Heritage” with European case studies. The research aims to introduce new and deeper perspectives on reference works that may constitute pedagogy for the future practice of architects within contextual, inclusive and sustainable approaches.

This paper proposes a critical analysis of the intervention, over time, in the housing estates built under the Improvement Plan for the city of Porto. This plan enabled the construction of a significant number of dwellings within a limited period of time, promoting a broad and impactful urban and social restructuring of the city in the mid-twentieth century. Several post-construction interventions over the last decades were important opportunities to improve the quality of life of the inhabitants and to enhance the energy performance of the buildings. However, these buildings are still subject to architectural and construction challenges in terms of ‘energy poverty’ and the adaptation of the domestic comfort parameters. Thus, this research analyses the intervention strategies used in these buildings and the constraints resulting from current legislation and funding conditions that significantly impact design decisions. The study points to significant changes in the implementation of measures to improve the state of buildings, becoming progressively more concerned with energy consumption and thermal comfort. The discussion also highlights the impact of current measures on the comfort of interior spaces, current problems, and alternative means of balancing energy and comfort. The relevance of this research lies in the joint analysis of the interventions and frequent efficiency and comfort problems as a motto to improve the implementation of future strategies in developing a more energetically balanced housing stock. The paper also aims to deconstruct the preconceptions often associated with interventions geared towards thermal comfort, especially in social housing.

O presente artigo tem como principal propósito apresentar e discutir metodologias de intervenção, focalizadas nos domínios estrutural e construtivo, em edifícios antigos de arquitetura corrente portadores de valor cultural. Na sua gênese, está o entendimento de que grande parte da intervenção que atualmente impende sobre este edificado, se caracteriza pela sua natureza fachadista, frequentemente de reconstrução integral do edifício e com total desconsideração dos valores culturais que os próprios materiais e técnicas construtivas tradicionais que o materializam lhe aportam. Procura-se, assim, através de uma breve revisão das principais recomendações hoje estabelecidas em matéria de conservação e reabilitação de edifícios antigos e da correspondente definição de uma metodologia genérica de intervenção, discutir diferentes abordagens e procedimentos correntes na prática, em correspondência com a natureza dos edifícios intervencionados, para, reconhecida a necessidade de uma aproximação específica para o grupo dos edifícios antigos correntes com valor cultural, apresentar sumariamente alguns estudos recentemente conduzidos, visando a discussão e o desenvolvimento de soluções e abordagens que facilitem a adoção de boas práticas nas respectivas obras de reabilitação, tomando como referência o caso particular da Casa Burguesa do Porto, do século XIX.