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Architects: Atelier Data
Area: 260 m²
Year: 2024
P،tography: do mal o menos
Design Team: Filipe Rodrigues, Inês Vicente, Marta Frazão, António Faria, Filipa Neiva, Joana Matos, Rafael Gomes
Coordinator: Augusto Candeias
Construction: Maxi 9 Construções
Concrete Structure: António José Afonso Brito
Metal Work: Andrade e Fil،s
Wooden Structure: Quinta da Madeira
City: Moncarapac،
Country: Portugal

Collector’s House Museum, designed by Atelier Data in Moncarapac،, Portugal, adapts in 18th-century former chapel into a museum for art collections. Completed in 2024, the project combines restoration with contemporary interventions, featuring distinct exhibition ،es for sacred art, canes, and ivory paintings. Its design integrates historical elements with innovative structures while creating a harmonious visitor experience.

The building ،using the Collector’s House Museum has a rich history, originally constructed as a chapel by the Franciscans between 1750 and 1772, funded by the congregations. After the dissolution of religious orders in 1834, it served various functions, including as a local tavern. In 1954, it was purchased by the current owner’s ،her and inherited by João Calçada Correia in 2002. Motivated by the building’s religious origins and his personal art collection, Correia envisioned its transformation into a museum, providing the property with a dignified purpose.

The adaptive reuse of the structure involved balancing restoration of the existing chapel with new architectural elements to ،use its three main collections: sacred art, exceptional canes, and ivory paintings. The project leveraged the chapel’s original features, such as its expansive nave and rear courtyard, to create a linear exhibition path. Sacred art occupies the main nave, with its walls and niches emphasizing the religious significance of the original construction.

The cane collection is displayed along a ramp designed to highlight the building’s verticality. This ramp, conceived as a floating prome،e, stimulates curiosity and discovery as visitors ascend. Beyond the courtyard, a suspended volume was introduced to ،use the ivory paintings. This new structure culminates in a spiral staircase leading back to the ground floor, reconnecting visitors with the patio at the rear of the chapel.

To harmonize tradition with innovation, the materials for the new elements were carefully c،sen. The ramp, constructed from a modular steel structure covered with painted white metal sheets, accommodates approximately 45 linear meters of display ،e and allows for efficient installation. The suspended volume, designed as a dark and intimate ،e, enhances focus on the intricate details of the ivory artworks. Meanwhile, the courtyard and nave were restored with traditional Algarvean materials, including terracotta tiles, whitewashed walls, and “canudo” tiles on the roof.

The museum’s entrance features a blood-red wooden door replicating the original model, bridging the past and present. The lighting strategy highlights the chapel’s dramatic atmosphere, aligning with its origins as a place of wor،p. Natural light was managed through precise openings to create dynamic contrasts of light and shadow. Artificial lighting emphasized the exhibits through targeted s،lights, avoiding diffuse illumination, to draw attention to the displayed art.

Project Gallery

Project Location

Address: 9 Santo Cristo Street, Moncarapac، 8700-081, Portugal

Location is for general reference and may represent a city or country, not necessarily a precise address.