House in Melides by Pedro Reis
Pedro Reis designed this home in Melides, Grândola Municipality, Portugal.
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Inhabiting this site means founding a place by means of a strong geometric imprint, achieved by two volumes overlapping in the shape of a cross. The aim of this dialectic strategy is not just to reduce the scale and presence of the construction, but also to split the programme into two areas, one more exuberant and exposed and the other more intimate and contained. If the light upper volume recalls the synthetic image of the modern house, with large glass areas open to the scenic countryside, the anchored lower volume, clad with sheets of earth-coloured concrete, pre-fabricated in situ, sits on the ground, giving support and stability to the house. In terms of programmatic organisation, the suspended upper volume concentrates the main spaces, defining the minimum housing unit, while the lower volume acts as an expansion zone, hosting more intimate areas or service areas, allowing increased occupation. The kitchen, as the centre of the home, takes on paramount importance here, acting as the crossing-point for all movements: entering, going through the inside and moving out into the garden, with the long pergola providing shade and a water tank reflecting the pine trees, set under the house into the main bedroom. The experience of this house aims to concentrate on its essence, on being inside and out, on contemplating and lingering, highlighting a enjoyable sense of living, close to the amenities of urban life.
Visit Pedro Reis’ website – here.
Photography by FG+SG
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Pedro Urbina on 01 May 2012 at 11:36 am #
It’s wonderful, marvellous, simple and I really feel like to live there. Congratulations to the architect and the owners!
suli on 01 May 2012 at 5:19 pm #
Love it. Love how the pool and the platform of the house cross each other.
paul koodravsev on 03 May 2012 at 2:23 am #
At first — well hmmm . But on further obersavation it starts to say something . I think that it is a sensitive response to its enviroment as it is planar. The simple planes and forms dont offend the enviroment its been placed in . Bravo to the architect . Nothing spectacular but nothing spectacular would have have done what has been done here .
Andy D4 on 04 May 2012 at 1:57 am #
Beautiful and simple concept. It’s actually refreshing to see a contemporary living space that long side open elevation works perfectly to break the interior exterior barrier and the slight overhang positioning must give the individual a sense of floating in the space. Great work.