The Visual Arts Centre is located in the Pátio da Inquisição (Inquisition Courtyard), near Sofia Street. Dating back to 1535, this street started on the Sansão square and crossed the grounds of the Santa Cruz Monastery. During the Renaissance reform of the University of Coimbra, in 1548, king João III had the College of Arts installed in the building designed by Diogo de Castilho. Shortly after, the College was relocated to the Alta and the building became the headquarters of the General Council of the Holy Office. Until its dissolution in 1821, with the Liberal Revolution, the building housed its prison cells, torture chambers and courtrooms. 

An exhibition space with revolving panels was created on the ground floor, allowing for different space typologies: either in a corridor or divided into small rooms. The archaeological remains have been preserved and covered with removable floors to allow the underground wings to be visited. Metal stairs lead to the upper floor, divided in two separate spaces by a structural wall. On one side, there is a 'container' with the laboratories, archives and photo editing rooms, detached from the walls, floor and ceiling. On the other, there are exhibition rooms, a library and offices. The ceiling structure was left exposed, revealing the trusses and purlins that support the roof and two skylights, replicated in the staircase volume. Outside, the ground was leveled using a stone pavement, with the drain lines underlining the connection to the Inquisition Courtyard. 

The adopted adaptation strategy takes into account the historical and archaeological significance of the building without restricting its new use. This suitability was achieved through an unequivocally contemporary language that seeks transparency between the existing and the new, between the past and the present.


João Mendes Ribeiro / Diogo Seixas Lopes