Flat refurb
Text by Camilo García and Diego Barajas (Husos)
A Guy, a Bulldog, an Edible Garden, and the Home they Share
This is a small refurbished house, 46m2 in size, in a modern variation on the traditional Spanish corrala – a block of flats whose access corridors look out over a shared interior courtyard – in the Acacias neighbourhood of Madrid. It began as a commission from Jaime, a young doctor who works in Casualty, in order to cater to his needs and those of his bulldog Albóndiga (‘Meatball’).
At the same time, however, this is part of a number of sociobioclimatic explorations we have been carrying out in various different housing projects, in the sense that they deal with the climate in environmental terms as well as in terms of the social climates that are generated through architecture.
These explorations are designed to increase the dwelling’s possibilities. On the one hand, there are possibilities that are largely quantitative: for example giving it the flexibility of a multiplicity of uses, and minimizing energy consumption. On the other hand, there are those that are mainly qualitative: as a place that enables unexpected transformative situations to take place, as a device in which other daily social and environmental activities are recognised; and as a scenario in which new narratives of bodies in the domestic sphere can emerge.
Microrealities
During the design process, we analysed several, During the design process, we analysed several, specific characteristics of the dwelling to be refurbished as well as the daily activities of these two flatmates. The original layout of the apartment had a double east-west orientation, but the excessive compartmentalisation of the spaces obstructed the cross- ventilation in the bedrooms, which meant that the west-facing spaces were excessively hot in summer. Both Jaime and Albóndiga are very sensitive to the heat, which is extreme in July and August in Madrid –something that the design of the new dwelling had to take into account. Bulldogs in general are delicate animals, being sensitive to high temperatures and requiring special care. Besides, this dog in particular is especially fragile as he is a rescue dog, who narrowly escaped being killed at birth as his health did not meet the standards of commercial selection.
For this commission, the size of the bedroom wasn’t important, but the living room needed to be large enough to stretch out and watch TV series in, to write up medical reports in, or to receive friends or more intimate companions. In the case of occasional encounters the living room is often a central place of the house in the gay sexual culture in Madrid, while frequently reserving the bedroom for closer relations i. Despite the small size of the apartment, the new home needed to allow Jaime to invite friends to stay over without having to open out a sofabed, which would take up a lot of space in the living room.
We began working bit by bit on these and other similar microrealities of the apartment’s occupants, like for example the important problem of Jaime’s sleep pattern – a frequent issue among doctors working in hospital emergency rooms. To recover from night shifts, it’s important to take naps during the day, as the circadian rhythms are disrupted. We realised that a siesta space should be an important feature of the design; it would preferably be an alternative to Jaime’s usual bed, which would be reserved as a place to sleep at night.
Sociobioclimatic Actions
This project was based on various actions. The interior space has been redistributed to create an ample living area, open on both east and west sides of the building, which allows air to circulate during the hot summer months, at the same time as turning the west facade into a kind of climatic cushion for the dwelling. A vertical vegetable garden has been designed on this side, taking advantage of a balcony that gives onto the central courtyard of the apartment block, which is visible from the corrala and protected on the inside by a set of two curtains, one made of transparent plastic, creating a greenhouse effect in winter, and another made of a porous textile that provides shade in summer. The incorporation of a domestic vegetable garden, designed in close collaboration with horticulture and irrigation system consultants and with the client, complements Jaime’s other experiences with sustainable food-growing as a member of responsible consumption groups.
Distributed within a 1.5m wide strip along the south side are the bedroom, a dressing room, a storeroom, and a multiuse capsule that works as a space to receive guests who might stay overnight or wish to rest alone, as a place to take naps that is different to the bed, or as a place to receive visits while lying down. The uses of the living room are thus extended and transformed.
This capsule-periscope is the ideal place to read, since it allows the reader to sit with their back to the window and simultaneously enjoy the view of the acacia trees on the street, as well as the sky, via an interplay of mirrors. By closing the sliding door, the space inside becomes private, and from the outside the door works as a great video projection screen. A series of cotton hemispheres serve as islands for the bulldog to rest on inside the dwelling that are at once soft and refreshing. These are fixed to the floor with suction cups, which enables Jaime to choose and change their placement.
Socialisations in the Corrala through Interior Design
The dwelling is located in a building that is a kind of modern corrala, built in the 1960s. The homes inside this apartment block are accessed by way of an open-sided gallery that enables neighbours to interact with one another, for instance when they meet while hanging out laundry – a very widespread custom in Madrid, as in other places in Spain. However, in this case, the central courtyard is occupied by commercial premises, which undermines the communal nature of this type of building. In traditional corralas, the courtyard is a very important space for social exchange.
The tomatoes, herbs, and other species planted in the new domestic vegetable garden will provide an excess of produce that Jaime will be unable to eat on his own, giving him the option of sharing it with others – whether it be neighbours in the building, work colleagues, or loved ones. In this way, the vegetable garden supplies not only food, but also the potential for extending the relational capacities of the dwelling, questioning the widespread idea of the modern apartment as an isolated residential nucleus. The dwelling explores the social nature of Madrid’s traditional corralas through this surplus of food, as well as by way of a curtain at the entrance that allows for different degrees of contact with the outer corridor – principally in summer, since the door can be left open and the curtain pulled back; by contrast, in winter, the curtain can be drawn and thus reinforce the privacy of the home, as well as providing sound and heat insulation.
Water Recycling Microlandscapes between Shower and Vegetable Garden
Part of the design is a watering system that makes use of the grey water from the shower; this could also serve as a replicable prototype that responds to the critical scarcity of water in a dry region like Madrid on a small scale.
Water is temporarily stored and then filtered to irrigate and maintain the plants which, as well as providing food, works as part of the thermal control solution to keep the interior cool – so much so that it was not necessary to install any mechanical cooling system such as air conditioning, even for the the year.
Material and Colour Policies
The walls, storage units, and floors are made of a combination of plywood boards and pine wood pieces made in a carpentry workshop and assembled on-site. We avoided plastering the walls, opting instead for a solution with breathable mortars in the bathroom, walls, and ceilings. In contrast with the antiseptic, supposedly neutral, white ambience of hospital wards where most doctors work, the atmosphere of the new dwelling is cosy and changeable, according to the lighting that Jaime decides upon, and according to the time of day. Walls and floors are warm colours like orange, cream, and the natural colours of the pine and birch plywood, with a few details in pink and purple that reinforce the non-heteronormative nature of this home space. We aimed to create a microlandscape with the tubes and filters running from the shower to the vegetable garden, allowing the flow of water to be seen in a way that attempts to be didactic, and understanding it as an assemblage of possible new ‘objects of desire’ for a hypothetical new, sustainable era.
This home is the spatial translation of this pair of flatmates’ different needs and specific wishes, but we believe that it also opens up the possibility of a new typological configuration and of the implementation of multiple strategies for many other, very different social microrealities and forms of home in a small living space.
