Articles by Susanna Moreira

The Quintas do Lago Praia dos Coqueiros project arises from the relationship between architecture, nature, and urbanism. The initial challenge was to create a club that valued the view of the lagoon without obstructing that landscape with the building. The solution was an architectural design in two levels. On the upper level, a linear plaza with a lookout extends from the sidewalk, guiding users towards the lagoon. On the lower level, the communal spaces — gourmet deck, party room, game room, gym, playroom, pantry, and restrooms — connect to a large organic infinity pool.

On the Island of Combu, about 15 minutes by boat from Belém, the Popopô Gallery transforms the riverside crossing into architecture. Located in the Combu Island Environmental Protection Area, amidst the forest and water, the project arises from listening to the territory and its ways of life, converting the everyday memory of river crossings into built space. More than just hosting exhibitions, the gallery inaugurates a symbolic landmark for the territory by asserting itself as the first art gallery on the island—a place where artistic production meets the social and emotional repertoire of riverside life.

Set on a corner lot marked by a gentle slope and broad views of the landscape, the JL Residence, completed in 2025, is organized from two independent volumes connected by a single metal structure. Located in Bragança Paulista, in the interior of São Paulo, the house adopts an architectural language that emphasizes structural lightness, transparency, and integration with the vegetation and views of the land.

Situated in the vibrant urban fabric of Lisbon, this 150 m² project unfolds over two floors of an iconic building from the 1950s, recently rehabilitated to embrace the demands of contemporary life. The intervention goes beyond mere restoration; it emerges as a manifesto of respect for the modernist legacy, reinterpreting the sobriety of the era through a bold and current lens. The central proposal was clear: to honor the memory of the original structure while injecting new energy that responds to the fluidity of today’s daily life.

Set at the edge of a clearing for the photovoltaic array that powers the main cottage on the site, Cardwell Clubhouse is an off-grid hybrid building that is part utility and part leisure hub. Designed by Dubbeldam Architecture + Design for an outdoors-oriented family who spend much of their time on the site immersed in nature and active pursuits, the clubhouse functions as the site’s central social and activity hub. It combines a multipurpose clubhouse room – doubling as a flexible guest suite – with a garage that stores outdoor leisure equipment for activities like racquet sports, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and more. An adjacent outdoor court for tennis, basketball, and pickleball (created in the clearing necessitated by the solar array), along with areas for bocce, horseshoes, and children’s games, reinforce the clubhouse’s role as a destination for gathering and play.

La Maison de la Pointe was originally a small summer cottage built on a vast land ending in a point on Lake Memphremagog. A modest construction from the first half of the 20th century, it bears witness to a time gone, when summer vacations were spent in a small lakeside cottage. What to do with this rustic cottage, cobbled together over the years and no longer meeting the owners’ needs?