marcos miguelez reinterprets the essence of traditional masonry with vms house in spain

the ‘vms house’ designed by marcos miguelez is located on a triangular site surrounded by mixed-use lands, near the outskirts of leon, spain. a small orchard of fruit trees border the plot on one side, a small dirt road on another side and a street in front of the main façade. the building is presented as a bold volume built in stone, adapted to the geometry of the location.

the heavy body built in stone adapts to the triangular site of magaz de abajo in leon, spain
all images © antonio vazquez

the building of spanish based marcos miguelez reinterprets the essence of traditional masonry’s great thick stone walls, which solidly protect the domestic space. a small volume rests above it creating a mezzanine inside. the interior distribution allows the dweller to live in along the natural daylight cycle: rooms at the dawn; the high windows on the south façade unveil the beauty of the landscape for the kitchen, living, study and dining room; a vertical opening on the west allows the light of dusk inside. the north façade features the accesses and cushions the lower temperatures through storage areas, laundry and garage.

a floating staircase gives access to the building’s library on the upper floor

living spaces are articulated from the mezzanine, layering the uses from the social area to the private area. a floating staircase gives access to the platform where the library is. an opening in the south-east corner of this attic gives way to the green roof, which thermally protects the whole ground floor. facilities are located under the slab of the ground floor, separating technical areas from everyday activities. meanwhile, the lightweight internal structure made in steal, allows an open floor plan and visual connections.

a small volume rests above, creating a mezzanine inside the building

the high windows on the south façade unveil the beauty of the landscape for the kitchen, living, and dining room

preliminary model for ‘vms house’

floor plan

section

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: apostolos costarangos | designboom