RC House

by Paulo Martins

ARCHITECTURE & DESIGN COLLECTION AWARDS 2022

Gold Winner

Private Residence Small Architecture Concept

Professionals Category

Description

Located in an uncharacterised urban agglomeration in the city of Águeda, in Barrô, and inserted in a land with buildings already constructed, this project intends to establish a relationship of continuity with the pre-existing buildings, while adopting a more contemporary language.
Assuming a dissonant language, the house rises along admittedly creased and slender lines, investing in a harmonious and coherent integration with coexistence and with the surrounding environment, whether through its implantation or through the strong connection between interior and exterior, dissolving and diluting the barriers that delimit these spaces.
The house is formed by two volumes that present themselves with different dimensions and languages, and by two plans that delimit and control the exterior space of the house. A glazed volume of generous proportions houses the social part of the house, while the second volume, lower, opaque and sheltered, houses the intimate areas of the house, improved in order to highlight this distinction.
Areas of generous and comfortable dimensions are intended, favoring large open spaces flooded with as much natural light as possible, always in constant relationship with the outdoor space and natural elements.
Programmatically, the building is distributed in a simple and functional way:
The entrance of the house, also accessible from the garage, has an entrance hall area, a toilet, a service closet and a laundry room.
The social area, located on the same floor, consists in an open space kitchen, with added pantry and storage, a dining room and a living room that are spacious and connected to each other, being extended to the outside. A staircase, hidden from prying eyes, leads us to the office at an upper level, offering us a privileged view of the social and outdoor space, still sheltered from noise, providing a unique workspace.
On the -1 floor, accessible via a staircase that marks the entrance to the house, we find a wine cellar area, the garage and the facilities.
Arriving at the intimate part of the house, we find two suites and a master suite, complemented by a terrace facing east. This area is separated and protected from the rest of the house so the users have total privacy.

Paulo Martins Arquitectura & Design

Paulo Martins Arquitectura assumes itself as a studio focused on experimental and strategic design, provoking and making the sensorial and emotional experiences part of the process and a goal to be achieved.
We project value-added buildings, designed to offer a high level of satisfaction and well-being, enhancing the relationship between dualities (interior / exterior, light / shade, soft / rough…), blurring their boundaries and diluting the barrier that separates them.
We propose a sustainable and hedonistic architecture, free from preconception and stereotypes.