Themodernistfaro

10/08/2026

Faro Beach, a house by Manuel Gomes da Costa.

In the 1950s, the beach houses on Faro Island embraced this modernist spirit — from updated traditional forms to futuristic designs echoing Palm Springs.

Faro Beach holds one of the Algarve's densest concentrations of modernist gems, several by Gomes da Costa himself.
This corridor, framed by a brise-soleil and the Ria Formosa, is one of them. MidCenturyModern PalmSpringsphoto credits Aymeric Warmé-Janville

03/08/2026

Georges Oliveira House, 1954.
Perforated concrete, weathered ochre, glass block doors worn by decades of hands. That cantilevered volume? A quiet nod to Frank Lloyd Wright.

This one's slated for demolition. For now, it's still standing.

Follow along for more hidden gems of modernist Faro. MidCenturyModern AtRisk credit photos Aymeric Warmé-Janville

27/07/2026

Faro Beach, steps from the sand.

Glass block windows, a bold blue frame — mid-century beach living, still standing strong.

Would you trade the view for the color? photo credit Aymeric Warmé-Janville

The Modernist is less a vacation hotel than a refuge for architecture lovers in the heart of the sunny Algarve, Portugal.

19/07/2026

Number 30, Faro.
Art Deco lines, original color to the build.
Would you walk through? ArchitectureDetails
Photo credits Aymeric Warmé-Janville

The Modernist is less a vacation hotel than a refuge for architecture lovers in the heart of the sunny Algarve, Portugal.

01/07/2026

Faro's rooftops tell two stories.
Terracotta below. Modernism rising behind.
Which one catches your eye first? SlowTravel

26/06/2026

Faro Island remains one of the Algarve's best-kept secrets for architectural pilgrims. Low-rise, human-scale, unhurried. A place where a staircase can still be a statement.
This private home was designed by Manuel Gomes da Costa in the 1959 - casa Antonio Pires.
→ What do you notice first?

The Modernist is less a vacation hotel than a refuge for architecture lovers in the heart of the sunny Algarve, Portugal.

23/06/2026

Circles and succulents. Faro, 1960s.
The building breathes. Literally.
This perforated wall was designed to filter the Algarve sun — no air conditioning needed.
What do you think inspired this pattern?
ArchitectureLovers ModernistFaro photo Elodie

17/06/2026

Before The Modernist, there was this café.
Every morning, Famous architect Manuel Gomes da Costa walked into Café Aliança, sat down, and talked. With local intellectuals. With priests. With anyone who'd argue about what Faro should become. Between 1950 and 2002 he designed nearly 350 buildings across the Algarve — and a good number of them were probably sketched out, argued over, or first imagined right here, over coffee.
The café itself is older still: founded 1908 as a dairy bar, rebuilt in the 1930s by architect Quintas Júnior after a fire, in the same revivalist style as Lisbon's A Brasileira. Pessoa sat here too. So did Simone de Beauvoir.
It has closed and reopened more times than this city wants to count — and it just did again last Saturday. Some rooms refuse to disappear.
A 1-minute walk from The Modernist.
📍 Café Aliança, Rua Dom Francisco Gomes, Faro Restaurante Aliança I Faro phtos Elodie

16/06/2026

This is what every guest finds at check-in.
The Modernist Architecture Walking Tour — Faro's finest modernist buildings, all within walking distance from our door.
Designed by us. For those who look at things differently.
Stay with us → themodernist.pt

FaroDesign WalkingTour ArchitectureLovers

12/06/2026

Key 2B is waiting.
Oranges from the market. Wildflowers.
Faro this summer— still possible.
Book direct → themodernist.pt
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Photos: Elodie