We could talk about large windows if we think about the very generous dimensions of the windows in this house, which, even so, are always strategically placed but in no case eliminate the walls. Some are more landscaped, others more square; some with fixed glass, others with guillotine; there are some sliding and others with two leaves and they open in the most conventional way; there are very large ones and some with shutters. They are all strategic because they look for the place and the format for the best views, almost all of them to the sea. But they are also how they are and where they are to fulfill a function, such as being a bar to pass dishes from the kitchen to the table on the porch. And in no case do they forget where to open so that the air can always flow through the house, with the smell of pine.
A house that captures the Mediterranean ideal and adds comfort
House in the forest (Begur). Emiliano Lopez and Monica Rivera, architects
This house in Begur, a new building designed by architects Emiliano López and Mónica Rivera, reflects the Mediterranean ideal that existed in the 1960s for summer or retirement homes, especially for foreigners. In fact, the house surrounded by pine trees and with views of the Aiguablava cove belongs to a foreign family who now, for their periods of recreation throughout the year, and with a view to future retirement, wanted to build one of those traditional Mediterranean houses, rather simple, easy to live in. Pleasant temperature – that contemporary life can offer.
But if this house has something especially unique, it is that it is not a single block with a certain orientation that means that, for example, if some rooms face south, others face north. Because the plot is quite large and because the owners did not want a very large house, but only what the family needs to live comfortably – 185 square meters in total – architects López and Rivera were able to choose to create an aggregation of concatenated volumes where each one is oriented according to whether it can have the best views, but also the best ventilation.
Thus, if you look at the floor plan of this house in the forest, you can see the irregularity it has and above all how the different rooms follow one another and are positioned, also how one passes from one to another while generating unexpected encounters between them. The fact is that, in this way, all the rooms in the house have sea views. All except the main bedroom, because the clients are very clear that they are going to sleep in the room and that, as soon as they get up, they go to other spaces in the house from which they do have a view of Aiguablava.
Also following the floor plan, you can see the frontality and importance that has been given to the kitchen. It is the most advanced space, it is large in itself but, in addition, it multiplies its dimensions with the width of the porches that surround it and with which it is directly connected by large windows, some of which serve as a bar for meals that are held under the porch.
In fact, the size of the porches, the fact that there is a fireplace and a terrazzo table made by Huguet and surrounded by benches for long stays, all this speaks of the very frequent use they want to make of this outdoor and covered space during the different times of the year and of the relevance they give it with the house.
The position and dimensions of the kitchen and the porches contrast with those of the living room, for which smaller sizes and a more set back position have been sought. It is a room designed for the winter days, of course, with views of the sea and the pine forest. Next to it, a study allows the owners to work remotely.
One of the aims of this project was to achieve this Mediterranean lifestyle of simple shapes and materials and with a circulation through the house and characteristics that would encourage life to happen naturally. Few pieces of furniture and a lot of it made of brick, small ceramic tiles on the floor, white walls without skirting boards, painted carpentry for doors and windows, wide steps and natural fibre carpets are almost all the elements of a house that seeks to make life easier. And, of course, modern comfort has been sought. The thickness of the double brick walls, the insulation and the treated concrete ceiling to enhance the view of its more matte materiality give it a very contemporary stamp.