The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse

Save
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse

Information

  • Project Name: The Meandering Wall
  • Student Name: Flaminia La Cava
  • Softwares/Plugins: AutoCAD , Adobe Photoshop , Adobe Indesign , Rhinoceros 3D , Twinmotion
More Info Less Info

Excerpt: ‘The Meandering Wall’ is a Masters Design Project by Flaminia La Cava from the ‘Accademia di Architettura di Mendrisio – USI’ that seeks to transform the abandoned site of Cais do Ginjal into a dispersed artistic center through the adaptive reuse of existing structures. Through the reinterpretation of the graffiti wall as a permeable and connective element, the project seeks to foster creativity, community engagement, and environmental harmony within a historically rich and evolving landscape.

Introduction: The project, titled The Meandering Wall, focuses on a striking 1.5-kilometer-long graffiti-covered wall located along the waterfront of Almada, in Cais do Ginjal, directly across the river from Lisbon. The semester began with a study of the site’s existing buildings, examining their current conditions and past uses to determine which structures could potentially be repurposed. Once an area dominated by industrial activity, the site is now characterized by a collection of decaying and abandoned buildings.

Upon first encountering the wall, the designer was deeply impressed and chose to center the project around its potential transformation. The initial concept involved creating a dispersed artistic center—public, inclusive, and accessible to all. The vision reimagines the wall not as a limiting element but as a transitional passage space.

Save

Site Context

Site Context
Study of the conditions of the existing buildings on site

Stretching for over a kilometer along the Almada waterfront in Cais do Ginjal, just across the river from Lisbon, stands a long, graffiti-covered wall—a powerful remnant of the area’s industrial heritage. Once a hub of factory activity, the site is now marked by decay, with nature slowly reclaiming the remnants of concrete and steel.

Site Context
First study of the use of the different existing buildings: how were they used before? Were the activities really working on site?

At the core of the project is this striking wall. Initially perceived as a dividing line, it gradually emerged as a space of movement, opportunity, and poetic reinvention. The proposal envisions the site as a dispersed artistic center—an open, inclusive space designed for public engagement and creative exchange.

Design Process

The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
Conceptual representation of the main topic of the reuse project
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
Study elevation of the existing site with this 1 and a half kilometre graffiti wall
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The evolution of the site of Cais do Ginjal

The design process began with a conceptual exploration of reuse, focusing on the wall as a connector rather than a boundary. An elevation study of the 1.5 km graffiti wall identified key points for intervention and integration. Historical analysis of Cais do Ginjal guided a sensitive response to the site’s layered evolution from industry to nature.

Final Outcome

The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
Ground floor plan with the reused buildings.
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
Section of the sensorial gardens, in different levels, reusing the ruins.
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
This perspective section shows the main addition to the site, with this new courtyard that create an artistic space to use for all the residence.

The program for the artistic center begins with the adaptive reuse of two existing buildings—one repurposed as an administrative hub and the other converted into an indoor gallery space. The heart of the project is a large workshop space, positioned alongside the existing wall, serving as a central gathering point for the creative community. Opposite this, a series of private ateliers are placed beneath residential units designed for artists.

The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
This is the most significant render, showing the life inside the new courtyard, which is created by the addiction of this two new timber structure, dedicated to the artist. In the middle it can become something for the public such as an open-air cinema.
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
Example of room of an artist that lives in the center, the choice of making a duplex was conceived to gather more light possible. | Image of the workshop space dedicated to all the artists and the free use that they choose to use it for.

These two timber-built structures are arranged around a shared inner courtyard, creating an open-air space where artists can display their work and visitors can experience it in a natural, welcoming setting. The remaining length of the wall incorporates a permeable structure, enabling easy and flexible access at various points throughout the site, inviting movement, exploration, and encounter.

The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
Plan of the gardens with the reused ruins and the new in red.
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
Image of the atelier of the artists in front of the courtyard, so that the public can watch them work. Each artist has its own atelier with his room upstairs (duplex apartments) | Image that shows this addition of the sensorial gardens for the public and the artists.

The remaining wall ruins are thoughtfully integrated into the project through the addition of sensorial gardens, featuring a variety of flowers and trees that enhance the site’s natural character. These spaces are left open to the sky, with no artificial ceilings or flooring—only grass underfoot and sky overhead. This intentional design choice deepens the project’s relationship with nature and invites a fully immersive environmental and sensory experience. The grassy terrain functions as a flexible, living surface, allowing for spontaneous artistic expression and everyday activities to unfold organically.

The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
Image of the model by the side
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
Zoom of the graffiti wall

Conclusion: Ultimately, The Meandering Wall is envisioned not merely as a physical site, but as an open invitation—to rethink the boundary as a place of creativity, community, and quiet renewal.

[This Academic Project has been published with text and images submitted by the student]

Site Context

Site Context
Site Context

Design Process

The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse

Final Outcome

The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse
The Meandering Wall: Reimagining Industrial Ruins as a Living Canvas for Art and Community | Masters Design Project on Adaptive Reuse

​​To submit your academic project for publication at ArchiDiaries, please visit the following link >> Submit

More Projects

Leave a Reply