Debarro Arquitectura

Debarro Arquitectura designs residential, tourist and utility buildings in clay, straw, cane and wood, and runs a school where people learn to build with these materials. The interdisciplinary group was founded by architects Marco Aresta and Fábio Mendes and works in Portugal and Argentina. They study and practise architecture in service of humanity, through natural construction techniques and biological architectural design, and they see bio-architecture as a way towards healthier, more sustainable places to live. Their projects use healthy, natural materials and combine bio-climatic principles, passive solar design, sensitive geometry and eco-technologies. The school, Escola Debarro Arquitetura, is in Tomar. Its hands-on courses cover adobe brickmaking, earth and straw walls, tabique construction, clay-based plasters and finishes, and artistic earth paintings. Courses run in two-week modules and are open to the general public, with or without prior experience. Mornings are practical. Afternoons are free for exploring the region, relaxing at the river beaches nearby or working remotely on the on-site wifi. There's camping space, along with bathrooms, showers and a communal kitchen. Debarro also promotes adobe, a legal, versatile and ancestral building system that has been present in Portugal for centuries. It is valued for its ecological footprint, its health benefits, its energy and acoustic efficiency, and its fire resistance. The studio emphasises that proper technique and technical guidance are essential if adobe buildings are to last. In both countries, the multidisciplinary team offers architectural project development, natural building training, consultancy, team coordination and technical support.