House, not mechanism
All at a minimum
A small flat by the Manzanares River has been renovated to accommodate young members of a family that has occupied it since the building’s construction in the 1920s. It was partitioned into several rooms like a larger apartment, and the reduced dimensions called for a thorough revamp, freeing up space as much as
possible and reconciling the tightness of before with the new life of a couple and their dog.
And yet it doesn’t move
Although many schemes for minimal housing rely on a catalog of mobile designs – packageable or mechanized – this one chooses to pursue the comfort of a more static dwelling. Without active furniture, all functional and storage space is concentrated along the perimeters, forming a user-friendly suite of closets, coun-
tertops, and shelves. In a single room for the entire program, only the bathroom is set apart, relocated behind a door set between shelves.
Indoor landscape
The presence of a mighty poplar tree in front of the windows was a cue to make the dwelling open out to it. This required restoring the original arrangement of openings, which in turn was an opportunity to replace the frames with single-layer, more impermeable joinery. Also contributing to the bright interior is a palette of
materials – a combination of ceramic floors, white-lacquered wood, and tiles for humid areas – that is neutral, nuanced only by the people and belongings gathered to form the household.
