Two architects have performed subtle surgery on Casa do Rosário, a storied townhouse in Porto’s art district.

Margarida Leitão and Luís Sobral of collective Departamento Arquitectura carefully restored the three-storey building – one of the oldest in Rua do Rosário – transforming it into two apartments and short term studios. They retained as many of its historic 19th-century features as they could.

This includes Casa do Rosário’s battered facade, which has been restored using original tiles in a lively shade of yellow – a colour adopted sparingly inside via patterned flooring and simple furnishings.

Elsewhere cream plastered walls offset cedar floorboards and custom furniture designed by the collective.

Rooms in Casa do Rosário – which is available via Airbnb – feature tall, beamed ceilings, shuttered windows and arched door frames. The ground floor accommodation leads onto a quiet garden, but it’s the top floor apartment that really shines.

Its exterior has been clad in corrugated steel, contrasting the townhouse’s lower floors. A private deck overlooks the city’s rooftops.

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