MUKA arquitectura envisions the house as an exposed concrete structure, with a composition of different levels or weightless planes, forming an ascending spiral pathway that interconnects common and private spaces. Following a gradient of intimacy, the design provides spatial continuity, linking the house’s interior spaces to each other and the surrounding natural environment.
Blurring the interior and exterior boundaries and providing a versatile solution where a single material resolves the structure, the enclosure and even the interior installations, the concrete home breaks with its characteristic material unity by incorporating different glazings with carpentry and furniture in oak wood, resulting in an example of bare and unadorned architecture that is comfortable and welcoming.
Oak House by MUKA arquitectura. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Project description by MUKA arquitectura
Two oak trees, a sheet of water and the horizon are the pre-existing elements in this plot, which influence the position and formal configuration of the house. The presence of this vegetation in the foreground, and the Pedrezuela Reservoir in the background, forces the house's floor plan to adjust its geometry to these elements, offering two responses: towards the south façade, where the compressed access at a single height makes a gentler, more continuous turn. The north façade, on the other hand, offers a double-height glazed area where the oak forces the straight line to bend at a point, pushing the building towards the interior. In a way, the construction manifests its subordination to nature by offering a reading of what was there before, and what came after, through these small, intentional gestures.
The opportunity to enjoy the views and contemplate the landscape is found on the north façade, which also marks the direction in which the land's slope descends, influencing the spatial relationship of the rooms with a diagonal layout that allows natural light to reach all levels and spaces in the house.
The concrete structure offers freedom in the placement of the supports, which have their own geometry and materiality. In this way, the different levels or floating trays that make up the interior journey of the house form an ascending spiral that not only takes place physically, but also in terms of privacy. The itinerary, therefore, offers spatial continuity between the reception area, study gallery, shower, bathtub, bedroom, and walk-in closet, in a gradient that runs from the more social areas of the house—at lower levels—to the more private areas—at higher levels.
The use of concrete through a double structural skin, in which insulation is interspersed, aims to blur the boundaries between interior and exterior, providing a versatile construction solution where a single material resolves the structure, enclosure, interior, and even the installations, which run through its interior. The character of concrete, as a material, also allows the dwelling’s condition to reflect an austere, bare, and unadorned nature, timeless in essence.
