Possaco House - Comporta |ARX PORTUGAL|

I am going to show you one finalist project on the contest Building of the Year, set by the website "plataforma arquitectura". 

The studio that developed this small house, with aproximatly 200 square meters, is the portuguese ARX PORTUGAL. The intervention area is located in the village of Possanco, Alentejo (centre/interior of Portugal). 

The paradigms of traditional architecture of the region, the white walls (lime) and the roofs with two garrets were the starting point of the design. Plus the triangular shape of the lot was a big constrain regarding the roof solution. 

How to design a two garret roofing in a triangular volume?

The answer was assuming that "cut" on the lot and replicate it on the house volume, it's easy to understand this process in the models scheme below.

Another paradox that the team faced was related with the view; the most interesting one was standing north and not south, where the windows should be placed in the search for natural light. In south there were street, traffic and passers-by that the owners wanted to avoid.

The solutions were found in another traditional paradigm of the architecture: the patio.

The building response is almost exclusively based on the Alentejo repertoire; white-matter, light-shade, thickness/mass and texture.  

Tranquilizing and very inspiring vacation house isn't it? The simplicity of lines and angles is amazing, the sharp edges opposing the bucolic view is overwhelming.

Hope you enjoy it. Over and Out!