The house envelope was carefully modulated and is made up of eighteen concrete rings with a height of 35 centimeters everyone, which corresponds to the dimension of two steps spaced 35 centimeters apart.
Inside, the house is a set of fragmented floors that enrich the interior spatial composition thanks to the hybridization of spaces, some connected and others spatially fragmented to gain volumetric richness.
Quinta do Rei by Contaminar arquitectos. Photograph by Fernando Guerra - FG+SG.
Quinta do Rei by Contaminar arquitectos. Photograph by Fernando Guerra - FG+SG.
Project description by Contaminar arquitectos
The villa is located in an elevated area with a strong slope in the city of Leiria, Portugal.
The conditions of the subdivision suggested a volumetry of a tower, a viewpoint over the city. One of our premises was that the social areas were located on the upper floors and the swimming pool on the roof, to enjoy the 360º view.
The house is the transformation of a regular cobblestone with the rotation on an axis that generates a new, more plastic shape, which optimizes the sun exposure and allows areas of balconies, shading, and circulations, from the ground to the roof, being a ladder from earth to heaven.
Quinta do Rei by Contaminar arquitectos. Photograph by Fernando Guerra - FG+SG.
The structure and the concrete outer skin are felt as a single body, rhythmic with 18 horizontal rings, a section corresponding to the height of 2 steps, which design the house in a game of full and empty, creating a protective filter, both solar and private, for those who inhabit it.
Inside, the house consists of half floors that connect some of the spaces with each other, while making others separate and autonomous.
