Atlas
Braga, PT
2025
In the Praça das Fontainhas of Braga, Portugal, nestled between stone walls and vegetation, there remains a space from the old estate that existed before the area was urbanized in the 1980s. Known as the Fonte do Atlas, or the Fountain of the World, this space never had a roof, but its configuration—with two side stairway accesses, the fountain on one end, and a false façade on the other, facing a basin—suggests a forgotten use or an unfinished gesture. The proposal does not resolve this ambiguity: it inhabits it. Two long beams of reused steel rest on the tops of the side walls, allowing natural light to enter. A third beam, placed transversely at one end, is supported by V-shaped tubular elements anchored to a stone set within the existing basin. Resting on this structure is a wooden dome built using the Lamella system: a curved grid method developed in the 1920s by the German engineer Friedrich Zollinger. Composed of diagonal slats arranged in diamond shapes, the system enables the creation of lightweight, self-supporting, and modular surfaces that promote structural efficiency. This structure does not cover the fountain. Instead, it hovers above it, activating multiple possibilities for use: it may become a place of pause, of conversation, of gathering, or of imagination within the intimate cosmos of the Fontainhas neighborhood.
Author:
Manuel Bouzas
Team:
Juan F. De la Torre (structure), Riley Wine and Varun Gandhi (assistants)
Collaborators:
Cornell AAP, Xilonor, FINSA, ArtWorks
Organizer:
Forma da Vizinhanca
Curators:
Space Transcribers
