MODERNE HEATER

The floor heater at Casa de Serralves, in Porto, is a piece of sculpture in polished brass erupting out of the marble floor. You can almost believe it could actually move up and down, complete with the top floor piece still attached. As always, perfect design and execution in Porto's greatest gesamtkunstverk, with the Ruhlmann interiors beautifully complementing Marques da Silva's architecture. Pity it didn't last like that to our days, and the now spartan white-painted interiors are somewhat used for performances or installations, but the hard surfaces and fixtures still remain as testament to less utilitarian and pseudo-minimalist times.