The beginning of the story
1940's
Maria Fernanda and Manuel Fernando had known each other since they were 10 years old. They had known each other since the day Fernanda arrived in Matosinhos. She had only known the life of freedom and exploration in Brazil, but after losing her father, they had to start a new life with her mother's family in Matosinhos. Fernando, the son of the partner and captain of the trawler Senhora da Guia, had always been the more introverted of the two, which made it difficult for them to start dating. In 1947, they got married in the Church of Bom Jesus de Matosinhos, the church that the balcony of the Casa d'Abreu Neto has a privileged view of. D'Abreu is the surname of Fernanda's mother's family, and Neto comes from Fernando's father's family. The vision came from Fernanda and Fernando joined her. Building their “family home” was Fernanda's dream, but it became the dream and pride of the d'Abreu Neto family.
The news from Matosinhos:
The beginning of the project
Fernanda wanted a plot of land on Av. D. Afonso Henriques in Matosinhos, which belonged to her cousin. Fernando got the deal. Fernanda drew her house on paper and in her mind. Fernando nodded. The land could be shared and that was how “As Quatro Casas” was born.
But without the First House, the numbering system would not have been followed. The Siza Vieira family were renowned residents of Matosinhos and one of their sons was studying architecture. He was still 21 years old and was not yet an architect. That is why it was only 55 years later that Álvaro Siza Vieira signed the project with a comment: “At the time, I couldn’t sign because I wasn’t an architect yet.”
It was during the conversations, debates and discussions between fears and scepticism between mother, father, daughter, son and architect during the execution of the project that Siza earned the nickname “Our Architect”. Only this family calls him that. They were the first, they have that right.
But for those who embark on an adventure where the horizon is still unclear, it is not easy. Novelty is, first of all, synonymous with criticism. Differentness is, first and foremost, synonymous with curiosity. Expectations naturally develop: Fernanda and Fernando wanted to have the house of their dreams, adored by everyone. Siza wanted to be accepted as an architect, and with a very unique style. “Palheiro”; “Gaiola dos Grilos”; “Casinhotos”; were considered the ugliest houses in Matosinhos.
A project that was paid for in three installments of 3,500 escudos and in which everything was discussed: innovations in carpentry and exotic woods; hardware and lamps designed by the architect himself; ochre glass tiles, a sculptural chimney and a passage from the kitchen to the dining room; a granite step and marble countertops; a ten-meter balcony; an ergonomic iron handrail.
The d'Abreu Neto family
and the House
1950's
May 28, 1957. The House is inaugurated.
The architect himself marked it forever with an engraving on a cement beam where you can read “MCMLVI” (1956).
The main entrance on Rua Dr. Filipe Coelho is surrounded by a small garden, which surrounds the house and contains trees and flowers still planted by Fernanda, as well as the place where the family's "faithful friends" are honoured. A chicken coop, which was recently replaced by a laundry room, a solarium terrace, which serves as a roof over the garage and a courtyard that serves as a service entrance on Av. D. Afonso Henriques. This entrance leads to the kitchen, with a sculptural chimney, nicknamed "Língua da Sogra" (mother-in-law's tongue), and a pantry lined with glass tiles. Next door, a room that was once "for sewing" and is now Marias' Room and bathroom. Fernanda would sew during the day with her friend Mariazinha in that room. Maria da Conceição, the orphan "adopted" by the family as a playmate, would play with Maria João and Jorge and at night it would become her room, Maria Manuel would keep her grandmother company when she spent the afternoons there.
The office, next to the entrance hall, is now the “Our Architect” space and the old shoe rack is currently used as storage. The dining room and living room, at different levels, are connected to the first floor by an emblematic staircase without any ironwork. A mezzanine, or gallery by the family, serves as a confluence for the bedrooms and bathroom. On the first floor are the Abreu Neto Room, the Boys' Room and the Guest Room that overlooks the garden. Three of the bedrooms overlook the immense balcony, the other overlooks the garden. The ground floor can once again be accessed by another staircase, this one in a “spiral” shape and with an ergonomic iron handrail, formerly painted black and now grey - a recent choice by Siza during the renovation project in 2022/2023.
But the house was not made up of the architect's choices alone. Fernando, against the recommendations of the architect and family, affixed the rudder of the Nossa Senhora da Guia trawler to the wall of the house. This rudder had been in the hands of his father for many years, as he was the master of the family's vessels. A plaque was also placed in the garden in homage to the "faithful friends" who passed through the family.
The lives of the House
1960's
In the meantime, the house had many lives during the 60s and 70s. Fernando used the office to keep his secrets and Maria João turned the living room into a “nightclub” where she and her friends could listen to rock, twist and slow vinyl records. Every Christmas, baptism and the Lord of Matosinhos Festival were spent there with all the family members and friends. The first technological objects: a black earphone and a black and white television also had their lives in the living room, the gallery and the bedrooms.
At the time, the architect Siza suggested designing the furniture, but Fernanda wanted to be the protagonist in the decoration of her house, leaving the design and execution to Costa furniture. After 66 years, in the recent renovation by Maria Manuel, the house finally deservedly receives the designer's furniture.
The lamps designed by Siza were also affectionately nicknamed “helmets” by the family, but Fernando was always going against the “helmets” but left them there.
Then there were particularities that made the house fluid and organic. The circulation was via two sculptural staircases, a passageway from the kitchen to the living room, large windows to the garden and even a peephole in the gallery's stained glass window facing one of the other "Four Houses", which allowed communication between Fernanda and Aunt Rosa in times of storms and prayers to Saint Barbara.
A guest room was defined to receive all the family and friends, and the siblings began to share the room with the largest wardrobe. The largest room with access to the balcony was chosen by Fernanda and Fernando and it was there that Maria Manuel was also born in 1971, against what would have been expected in society at that time.
Casa d'Abreu Neto opens its balcony to everyone
2000's
In 2013 Fernanda leaves but Fernando still has a dream to fulfill.
With the birth of the Casa da Arquitectura, he made a request for help from this institution: that Álvaro Siza Vieira sign the house's plans. And so it happened.
Since 2016, Open House Porto has been inviting families to open their doors for visits. Every year, they welcome over 500 people over a weekend with the support of volunteers and guidance from architects such as António Choupina and João Rapagão.
In 2017, Fernando invested in a major renovation to make its uniqueness shine: the exterior area was tidied up and well landscaped, the woodwork was refurbished and polished, the shutters and gates were painted, and the walls were plastered and painted. It was as good as new and always faithful to its originality. It was in that year, 60 years after the house had been inhabited, that the balcony regained its personality and life.
In the same year, Expresso - led by Valdemar Cruz - dedicated a report that became one of the most read ever, " Meet Álvaro Siza Vieira's First Victim ", to Siza's first "victim". Mr. Fernando, aged over 90, was interviewed and, with a twinkle in his eye, lucidly shared all his memories in great detail. The title was given by Siza, inspired by a moment of spontaneous humor with Maria Manuel when he was signing an exhibition catalogue. He also wrote the same article for journalist Barbara Baldaia for TSF, aged 93.
It was in 2022 that Casa d'Abreu Neto, part of the "Quatro Casas" project, was classified as a Monument of Municipal Interest in Matosinhos.
Transformation of
Casa D'Abreu Neto
Interestingly, Maria Manuel, the current person responsible for the renovation project, is the one who the house means the most to her family. She was born, grew up, spent her childhood, had parties and birthdays, studied, and celebrated Christmas and New Year's Eve in this house. She lived in the house until she was 10 years old, when she moved in with her parents. However, she never physically or mentally separated herself from the place where she had always been happy.
Siza left deep and indestructible marks on the d'Abreu Neto family. And even his great-granddaughter Rita, at the age of 12, decided to introduce Siza's personality and the family home at school when she was asked to write a paper on "The Book of Memoirs I Would Like to Read".
The House is made up of marble, exotic woods, lamps and handles designed for the space but above all it is made up of a lot of respect, trust, communication, affection and love.
2019
The visit of Mr. Architect
Fernando Neto wants to leave the heritage in its best possible condition and dignity. He wants the work and legacy to be perpetuated in the future, and it is at this time that Maria Manuel also begins to envision the future of that house in a new, more consistent way and protecting the heritage.
It was during this process that Fernando Neto insisted on a visit by Architect Siza, as he had never returned since 1957.
In 2019, the renowned Italian architecture magazine “Casabella” dedicated an issue called “Siza before Siza. Álvaro Siza L’Opera Prima”, nº 896. From there came visits to various architecture studios around the world, publications in other architecture magazines and books, photographs and filming for exhibitions about the Siza retrospective, the preparation of a documentary about the family and the house, doctoral theses, research papers. And, more recently, a book was released, written by Maria João Neto (daughter of Siza’s first clients) that tells the story of the house and the family.
After years of waiting, but always with the perseverance and friendship of architect João Rapagão, one day in February, "Our Architect", accompanied by João Rapagão, Carla Barros, Sara Nunes and the film and sound crew, made Fernando's dream come true. Finally, the reunion! It was a very happy day.
It was from this happy encounter that the inspiration for the creation of the documentary "The First Siza" was born.
It was on that day that Siza saw his signed plan
and justifying "I wasn't an architect yet".
The report in Expresso is one of the most read of the year and has therefore received greater attention from the national and international press, particularly from Casabella magazine no. 896 - Siza before Siza. Álvaro Siza L'Opera Prima - which dedicates the issue to this entire project.
In April of that year, Fernando leaves and goes to be with his Fernanda.
"The Four Houses"
by Álvaro Siza Vieira
(Matosinhos, 1957)
In 1954, Álvaro Siza, still a student at the Porto School of Fine Arts, designed what would officially become his first project: four houses for the same family. With two single-family homes and two semi-detached houses, the building complex acquired an unmistakably urban dimension in its relationship with the avenue.
Siza’s first work (still far from the architectural expression of what would come to be considered his masterpieces), the set of four houses is an essay on the revision of modernity that mixes the Inquérito à Arquitectura Popular (filtered by Távora), Le Corbusier’s Ronchamp and his usual Alvar Aalto. Integrated into this set, the house of his first client envisages a route that requires doubling the stairs which, although reducing the free space, expands the possibilities of living in the house. In this, the project is complex and contradictory, anticipating Venturi’s 1966 book of the same name. The kitchen of the Neto house seems to have been moulded, in clay-coloured tiles, by Siza’s own hands, still impressed by the initial discovery of the organic expression of Gaudi’s architecture. The sculptural presence of the chimney in the space of the fire is reminiscent of Christmas, Easter and the ordinary days of that house. (Joana Couceiro and Nuno Valentim, OHP’19).
Recently renovated by architect Álvaro Siza, Mr. Neto's house overlooks the Senhor de Matosinhos festivities that are currently taking place. It does so in the form of a balcony, with cobblestone paving and two benches that fit into the carpentry of the railings, penetrating the space of the bedrooms.
Architect Álvaro Siza's work on these houses took place between 1954 and 1957, when the Portuguese architect was still a student at the Escola Superior de Belas Artes, in Porto.
At the time, the project was controversial due to its boldness and innovative features for the time. Today, this building - which comprises two single-family homes and two semi-detached houses - remains privately owned, but is much appreciated by curious people and architecture lovers.
Álvaro Siza Vieira was born in Matosinhos on June 25, 1933 and studied Architecture at the Porto School of Fine Arts between 1949 and 1955.
He is the author of numerous projects spread throughout the world. In Portugal, the highlights include the houses in the Malagueira neighborhood in Évora, the Faculty of Architecture of Porto, the Parish Center of Marco de Canavezes, the Serralves Museum, the Portuguese Pavilion at Expo'98 in Lisbon, the restoration of Chiado, among many others.
In Matosinhos, in addition to the “Four Houses”, he designed the Boa Nova Tea House (1958-1965), the Quinta da Conceição Swimming Pool (1958-1965), the Tidal Pool (1961-1966), the Leça da Palmeira Waterfront (2006) and the remodeling of his parents' house, on Rua Roberto Ivens (1961, 2009 and 2022). In 1988, the Matosinhos City Council awarded him the Medal of Merit (Gold) and in 2007 the Medal of Honor (Gold) and the title of Honorary Citizen.
His extensive list of distinctions also includes the Architecture Prize of the International Association of Art Critics (1981), the Mies van der Rohe Prize for Contemporary Architecture (1988), the Pritzker Prize of the Hyatt Foundation (1992), the Secil Prize (1996, 2000, 2006), the Golden Lion Prize of the Venice Architecture Biennale (2002, 2012), the Spanish National Architecture Prize (2019) and the Charles Abella Grand Prix for Architecture of the French Academy of Fine Arts (2019).
Started in 2020 and completed in 2022, the "Four Houses" were classified as a Monument of Municipal Interest, and the process of classification at a national level by the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage is underway.
2020's
The new identity of the House
In 2021, Maria Manuel wants to preserve the house and tell its story in a different way. The family home begins to evolve towards a new identity: Casa d'Abreu Neto, as an architectural object open to all: open to visitors and for stays.
Casa d'Abreu Neto becomes a brand, a landmark, a member of the Iconic Houses Foundation, and is refurbished for its new function by Architect Siza, including the design of furniture and even the house logo. Inês Baptista da Câmara, CEO of Studio Astolfi and Art is Luxury, provided branding consultancy to bring about a new phase for the house.
In 2024, Casa d'Abreu Neto completed its renovation works and the book "O Nosso Arquitecto" by Maria João Neto was launched. It also became a guest member of Iconic Houses . It was also presented as an identity project by Siza in the CASA (Álvaro Siza Wing) exhibitions curated by António Choupina at the Serralves Foundation in Porto, and in the SIZA exhibition curated by Carlos Quintáns at the Callouste Gulbenkian Foundation in Lisbon.
Today, you can feel the atmosphere and have the best dreams in the first ever project by a Pritzker architect. The house has four bedrooms and can accommodate up to 9 guests. We invite you to find out all the details and book here .
In April 2025, the Serralves Foundation in Porto will premiere the documentary "The First Siza", by Building Pictures and directed by Sara Nunes, which revisits Álvaro Siza's first work, 60 years later, revealing the reunion with his first client and family, and the impact of architecture on people's lives.
From 2025 onwards, Casa d'Abreu Neto will become a place to stay for lovers and those curious about Siza, architecture, art, and travelers to Porto and Portugal. With guided tours, experiences, events and stays for up to 9 people.
Siza and the
"his first victims"
Fernando shares with Siza at this meeting that the house belongs to both the d'Abreu Neto and Siza families.
It is a connection through space that is perpetuated in the memory of those who live there, those who visit it and those who stay at Casa d'Abreu Neto.
It's the first one.
The History of Casa d'Abreu Neto in Photographs
"Our Architect"
The first work of architect Álvaro Siza Vieira and the stories of the Neto family
The book tells the stories of the d'Abreu Neto family intertwined with their experience with the then young Siza Vieira, before, during and after construction, reporting the anxieties and concerns of the clients, the criticisms of the architects of the time, the displeasure of the population and the press, the scathing criticisms of the time and the emergence of an architectural genius. It culminates in 2019 with a memorable visit by the architect Siza Vieira to his first project and his first client, after an absolute absence of sixty years. The first client, his first project, the owner's first home, provided an unforgettable encounter, marked by hilarious and emotional moments.