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The discreet designer behind much of Macau’s cultural preservation projects tells Bourree Lam about old ladies and bellybuttons

I hadn’t visited Macau in years when I started hearing whispers about The Architect, a mysterious man who spearheads initiatives to protect historical sites and restore them into beautiful modern structures. A man who was championing cultural industries and rallying creative forces in the enclave, and whose reputation was spreading fast across Asia and Europe. I was intrigued.

So I decided to chase the elusive architect’s shadow, starting at one of his recent restoration triumphs, Albergue, better known by its translated name of Old Ladies' House. I asked around in earnest, called all of the contacts I could find, left my number at his office, to no avail.

Then, one afternoon, I received an anonymous call. “How do you pronounce your name?” said the voice on the other end. I answered, perplexed. “Please hold,” she said, dryly. “The Architect would like to speak to you." I started to panic, but it was kind of exciting too, half expecting that all answers from the other end would be along the lines of “I could tell you, but then I would have to kill you.”

But then an energetic Portuguese voice came on the line, greeting me with a cheery “Hello! I am Carlos Marreiros. I hear you would like to meet me?"

From Portuguese and Chinese descent and fluent in both languages, as well as German, Carlos Marreiros perfectly embodies Macau’s cultural integration. He strolls into the Grand Lisboa, a perfect gentleman wearing a striped suit, a colourful tie accented with a royal blue pocket handkerchief and a warm smile under baggy eyes.

"See these?" he asks, pointing to his face. "I've only slept about five hours in the past few days." Between endless meetings, Marreiros is busy consulting the Macanese government on cultural affairs, designing and restoring buildings, as well as creating homes for private clients through his firm Marreiros Architects. No wonder he is so hard to track down. And he's not just an architect; he’s a writer and an artist, too.

Born and raised in Macau, Marreiros was educated and trained in Europe, which accounts for the Western influences in his work, although he has always remained faithful to his cultural roots, returning to Macau after his studies. "I know that the ‘mixture of cultures’ is so cliché," he says between cigarettes."But the greatest lesson of Macau to mankind is tolerance. If you look a little closer at St Paul, you'll see the small nineteenth-century Chinese Na Tcha temple that was meant to go inside the compound of the main cathedral. This embrace, to me, is just fantastic. It’s the essence of Macau. It’s in my architecture, in my paintings and my writing, too."

And although he’s happy that Macau’s casinos have brought immense prosperity and tourism to the SAR, Marreiros regrets that they have also brought with them a culture that focuses solely on gaming and entertainment. Fusing the past with the present in his restoration projects, Marreiros is intent on preserving Macau's rich heritage amidst the rapid growth of the gaming industry. "If you want to be a world class city, you can’t leave culture and heritage behind,” he says.

"You have to do it properly, though,” he continues. “You can’t just replicate or imitate the past, which is popular in China. That is absolutely culturally unacceptable. Architecture should never replicate, if you add anything it must be very modern. It makes me happy to create contemporary work that still has the spirit of Macau’s tradition. It’s a real challenge."

He’s a man who should know, the SAR is dotted with his accomplishments. Since 1983, Marreiros has been restoring historic Macanese structures, as part of his own efforts to turn Macau into the region’s most architecturally interesting city. From the Tap Seac Gallery, cleverly modernised to feature a parking lot hidden beneath a traditional square, to government and private buildings all across the enclave – almost every corner of the city features his distinctive style of cultural integration. The Old Ladies’ House is a perfect example of the combination of care and modernity he brings to every project. With no exterior traces of restoration visible on this beautiful 400-year-old building – hundreds of stones were imported from Portugal for its repair – the interiors are thoroughly modern, clean cut, well lit, and air conditioned for the hot and humid summers.

Then Marreiros makes perhaps the most unlikely, yet humorous, analogy: “Macau is like a bellybutton,” he states, confidently. “It’s a small place to which many people can relate, yet it’s not quite obvious how.” In a way, that's the spirit behind St Lazarus – its location connects the Tap Seac Gardens to the City Museum, so that walking from one historic Macanese heritage site to the other will take you to the heart of the city's blooming contemporary talent. Something of an alternative for thoughtful visitors who want to experience the old and the new, as well as find out what the creative minds of Macau are up to.

Marreiros checks his watch; it’s time for him to rush off to his next appointment, leaving only his shadow behind. “As long as I have strength, I will do my best,” he says. “I just hope our contribution will be a good example to the rest of the world."