sliding wooden slats transform residence's outline in portugal

HOUSE in PRAIA VERDE blends with the pine forest in subtle design

Architect José Martinez Silva, the founder of Atelier Central Arquitectos, completes the residential project in Praia Verde, Portugal. Located between the Ria Formosa Nature Park and the Castro Marim Marshland Nature Reserve, the property neighbors an immense pine forest, shaped by the winds brought by the sea. Sculptured pine trees stretch along the valley to the river that runs adjacent to the site’s southern edge. The design aims for a responsible intervention following the sensations, the textures, the light, the shadows, and the materiality of the area.

Preserving the essence of the surrounding landscape, the structure makes its way between two exposed concrete planes with pure lines forming the floor slab which rests lightly on the ground. The sun protection canopy extends from the frame of the roof that is supported by the surface shaped by the tops of the pine trees and hidden under a sustainable cover consisting of a layer of native plants. Between these two horizontal planes, thermally treated wooden slats arranged vertically materialize the volumes and serve as blinders to the sliding windows. Over time, the aged wooden material will look more and more similar to pine bark.

House in Praia Verde | all images by Fernando Guerra | FG+SG

concrete pergola forms delineated shadows in the interior

The stereotomy of the exposed concrete planes is printed or molded by the aged wooden slats serving as their formwork, prolonging their texture and enclosing the volumes in similar expression. Subtly, a patio separates the living room and kitchen from the bedroom zones, demarcating two apparently independent volumes, however, joined by the same porch. Inside, a concrete pergola protects and prevents light from flooding the interior, projecting delineated shadows. Scattered and hidden in the middle of the large volume, other courtyards illuminate and ventilate the bathrooms and the laundry room. Facing south, large openings, with subtle frames concealed inside the wall, open up onto the landscape. The pine trees and the swimming pool, a huge mirror of water that reflects the greenery, are transported to the inside of the house.

The basement hides the vehicle park, as well as all the technical support and storage areas. The design of the house by José Martinez Silva respects nature and biodiversity, not only because of its integration into the existing landscape but, also, because of the reduction of the ecological footprint associated with its use. Large, south-facing openings capture all thermal gains during the winter, while a concrete canopy protects the interior during the summer. The project attends to this principle through ventilated facades with high-performance projected insulation, landscaped roof with insulation consisting of extruded polystyrene, expanded clay, river sand, and night-time moisture collection system, and, finally, transverse ventilation for cooling.