(“Text as taken from the website”)
Diogo Brito
Diogo Brito received his Master in Architecture from the Faculdade de Arquitectura da Universidade Lusíada, Porto, in 2006. Before founding OODA, Diogo worked as an architect with Zaha Hadid Architects in London and previously with Promontorio Architects in Lisbon.
Frequently invited to lecture in Portugal and abroad, Diogo was a guest critic at the Final Reviews of Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design Architecture’s Final Reviews in 2022 and has been jury member in different international design competitions.
Diogo was the commissioner of Outside Job – Reporting Design Process Overseas – a set of lectures held at Casa das Artes in 2016 in Porto which focused on how and what architects with international experience operate within the field of architecture and design. Subsequently, he was the author and editor of ToolBook, published worldwide in 2019, a practical book about the practice of architecture in the everyday life of architects which specifically covers the methodology and operational side of offices such as Foster + Partners, Steven Holl, Bjarke Ingels, Kengo Kuma, Fernando Romero and Eduardo Souto de Moura.
Diogo was awarded the European 40 Under 40 Award 2022-2023, organized by the Chicago Athenaeum Museum in collaboration with the European Centre for Architecture, Art, Design and Urban Studies.
Francisco Lencastre
Francisco Lencastre received his Degree in Architecture from the Faculdade de Arquitectura da Universidade Lusíada, Porto, in 2007. In the same year he received the Secil Prize in Architecture – Universities with the project Casa das Artes do Barreiro. Before joining OODA, Francisco worked as an architect at Menos é Mais (Guedes + DeCampos), in Porto, on the projects for Quinta do Vallado Winery (in Peso da Régua) and for the Vila Nova de Gaia’s Cable Car.
Francisco joined OODA as a Partner in 2011, where he has been developing several projects such as the Mixed-use project at the Old Canning Factory, Fábrica de Conservas in Matosinhos; the residential projects Foco in Porto and Jardins da Arrábida in Vila Nova de Gaia; and the renovation of Lóios apartments in the Historic Centre of Porto.
Francisco was awarded the European 40 Under 40 Award 2022-2023, organised by the Chicago Athenaeum Museum in collaboration with the European Centre for Architecture, Art, Design and Urban Studies.
João Jesus
João Jesus received his Master in Architecture from the Faculdade de Arquitectura da Universidade do Porto, in 2008. Before joining OODA, João worked as an architect at OMA / Rem Koolhaas office in Rotterdam, on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange project, and previously at Carrilho da Graça Arquitectos on the Cruise Terminal Contest project. Between 2012 and 2016, he joined LIKEarchitects as a Partner.
In 2018, João was invited to be a Partner at OODA, where he has been developing several projects such as the Hotel Harare Radisson Blu in Harare, Zimbabwe; the Residential project Jardins da Arrábida in Vila Nova de Gaia; the Residential project Alameda das Antas in Porto; and the building for the Headquarters of the Portuguese Football League, Liga Portugal HQ, in Porto.
João was awarded the European 40 Under 40 Award 2023-2024, organized by the Chicago Athenaeum Museum in collaboration with the European Centre for Architecture, Art, Design and Urban Studies.
Julião Pinto Leite
Julião Pinto Leite received his Graduation in Architecture from Faculdade de Arquitectura da Universidade do Porto, in 2007, completing an Academic Internship at Serôdio Furtado & Associados. Before joining OODA, Julião worked as an architect at Allies and Morrison in London, UK, and previously at José Carlos Cruz office where he collaborated as an Architect and Project Leader until 2018.
In 2018, Julião was invited to be a Partner at OODA, where he has been developing several projects such as Hoso, in Porto; the Tower 15 & 1 in Leça da Palmeira; and Casa CM, in Oeiras. Frequently invited to participate in architecture conferences and lectures, Julião was a speaker at the Archi Summit 2022 whose theme was ‘Scale and Impact’. More recently, he participated in the international ‘Symposium on Renewable Energies Sustainable Architecture’ that took place in Galiza, Spain.
Julião was awarded the European 40 Under 40 Award 2022-2023, organized by the Chicago Athenaeum Museum in collaboration with the European Centre for Architecture, Art, Design and Urban Studies.
Rodrigo Vilas-Boas
Rodrigo Vilas-Boas received his Master in Architecture from Faculdade de Arquitectura da Universidade Lusíada, Porto, in 2005, completing an Academic Internship at Álvaro Leite Siza Vieira. Before founding OODA, Rodrigo worked as an architect at OMA / Rem Koolhaas office in Rotterdam and previously at MVentura & Associados Arquitectos, in Porto.
Frequently invited to lecture in Portugal and abroad, in 2023 Rodrigo participated in the international ‘Symposium on Renewable Energies Sustainable Architecture’ that took place in Galiza, Spain. Rodrigo was also invited to be guest critic at the Final Reviews of Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design Architecture’s Final Reviews in 2022 and has been jury member in different international design competitions. More recently Rodrigo was part of the jury panel at The Loop Awards.
Rodrigo oversees the design of many prominent hospitality and mixed-use projects, including Arca D’Água in Porto; the Hotel Jornal, a re-use of an iconic 60’s tower that used to be the headquarters of a daily newspaper in Porto; and Marvila Masterplan in Lisbon.
Practice Ideology
OODA is a team of over 50 collaborators from different nationalities working on a wide range of projects with different scales and programs, from singular houses to large scale residential buildings and hotels, institutional buildings to masterplans.
Established in 2010, OODA came about as a result of the reunion between Diogo Brito and Rodrigo Vilas-Boas. Francisco Lencastre joined the office in 2011, initially based in the historical city centre of Porto. In 2018 João Jesus and Julião Pinto Leite joined to expand OODA to five partners.
Recently, OODA has expanded their facilities and currently has two offices with one in Matosinhos, Porto, and one in Lisbon. In the near future, they aim to expand internationally.
