Reminiscent of the fortified farm. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo
06/10/2021.
[Grândola - Alentejo] Portugal
metalocus, EDWIN GUAILLA
metalocus, EDWIN GUAILLA
Deep in the hills of Grandola, Portugal, PROMONTORIO and the architect Joao Cravo design Casa Da Volta, in a gently undulating topography that contrasts with the stark dryness of the landscape and its bare vegetation of cork and holm oaks.
The typology is that of a fortified farm. The house is conceived as a walled courtyard, on which a series of interior volumes that contain 6 rooms are contrasted. The house, together with the landscape, is reminiscent of Le Corbusier's Peyrissac residence.
The typology is that of a fortified farm. The house is conceived as a walled courtyard, on which a series of interior volumes that contain 6 rooms are contrasted. The house, together with the landscape, is reminiscent of Le Corbusier's Peyrissac residence.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Luis Viegas.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Luis Viegas.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Luis Viegas.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Luis Viegas.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Alexandre Ramos - Frame Fotografia.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Alexandre Ramos - Frame Fotografia.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Alexandre Ramos - Frame Fotografia.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Alexandre Ramos - Frame Fotografia.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Alexandre Ramos - Frame Fotografia.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Alexandre Ramos - Frame Fotografia.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Luis Viegas.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Luis Viegas.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Alexandre Ramos - Frame Fotografia.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Alexandre Ramos - Frame Fotografia.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Alexandre Ramos - Frame Fotografia.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Alexandre Ramos - Frame Fotografia.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by Luis Viegas.
Site plan. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Groun floor plan. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Elevation. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Elevation and Section. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Elevation and Section. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Section. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Constructive section. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Constructive section. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Perspective. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Perspective. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Perspective. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Perspective. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Model axonometry. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Model axonometry. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Inspiration model. Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by PROMONTORIO.
Casa Da Volta by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo. Photograph by PROMONTORIO.
The Casa Da Volta designed by the Portuguese studio PROMONTORIO and the architect Joao Cravo, is conceived as a walled courtyard, on which a series of interior volumes are opposed, however, an exception is made in the east elevation, since it opens to a large terrace overlooking the immensity of the landscape and a small stream below.
Inside the courtyard, three rectangular volumes occupy the north, east and west corners, respectively comprising the en-suite bedrooms, the living room and kitchen and the staff's garage-bedroom, while the void to the south is occupied formally by an orchard. The ceiling is made of whitewashed structural wood beams and decked with white stucco walls and concrete floors.
Inside the courtyard, three rectangular volumes occupy the north, east and west corners, respectively comprising the en-suite bedrooms, the living room and kitchen and the staff's garage-bedroom, while the void to the south is occupied formally by an orchard. The ceiling is made of whitewashed structural wood beams and decked with white stucco walls and concrete floors.
Description of project by PROMONTORIO, Joao Cravo
The house is located in the Southwest of Alentejo, deep in the Grandola hills. The gently undulating topography contrasts with the harsh dryness of the landscape and its bare vegetation of cork and holm oaks with sparse bushes creeping from the calcareous soil.
Given its remoteness and isolation, the house echoes the tradition of the Portuguese alcáçova, —or qasbah, following its Arab etymology—, which functioned as a defensive citadel, or compound, with its constructions built within and protected by a high-walled perimeter. Poetically, it summons the Heideggerian notion of “bounded space”, of the human need to define a place of dwelling amidst the endlessness of the landscape. In fact, this typology of a fortified farm is the dominant form of occupation across the Maghreb and the Mediterranean, from Roman antiquity and Arab settlements, to Fernand Pouillon’s and Le Corbusier’s excursus in Argel.
The house is devised as a walled court, onto which a series of inner volumes are set against. The positioning of this court in the landscape was actually constrained by a regulatory distancing from the property limits. Sited on a valley line, it appears half sunk from the Southwest corner, progressively revealing itself towards Northeast. Other than a corner gateway and the small entrance door, the exterior walls barely have openings. An exception is made to the East elevation, as it opens up to a large terrace overlooking the vastness of the landscape and a small creek below.
Inside the courtyard, three rectangular volumes occupy the North, the East and the West corners, comprising respectively the bedroom suites, the living room and kitchen and the garage-cum-staff bedroom, while the void southwards is formally occupied by an orchard. The common areas function in a classical sequence of unfolding rooms, from the kitchen to the living room and to the library, all of which are separated by symmetrical pocket doors. The dining area is divided from the living room by a large fireplace with a hanging metal chimney. The ceiling is made of structural whitewashed wood beams and boarding with white stuccoed walls and cement floors.
Clad from the outside in a whitewashed stone masonry, the thick walls are capped by an elusive pan tile, suggestive of a pitched roof that in fact does not exist, and an equally calk painted concrete lintel. The roughness of these burnt lime surfaces summons a vernacular and quasi-archaic condition which is nonetheless dismissed by its sheer scale and abstraction.
More information
Architects
Client
Pedro do Carmo Costa.
Area
Gross built area.- 500 sqm. Plot area.- 7,7 hectares.
Budget
Construction Cost.- € 1,350/sqm.
Dates
Design.- 2016. Built.- 2021.
Location
Grândola, Alentejo, Portugal.
Photography
João Perloiro, João Luís Ferreira, Paulo Perloiro, Paulo Martins Barata, Pedro Appleton. PROMONTORIO
Promontorio, a five-partner firm lead by João Perloiro, João Luís Ferreira, Paulo Perloiro, Paulo Martins Barata and Pedro Appleton, PROMONTORIO is a full-service architecture, planning, landscaping, interior design and graphics team that began in Lisbon in 1990 as an experimental studio. It consistently grew into a practice of fifty architects, planners, landscape architects, interior designers and graphic designers.
Underlying its approach to the urban form, the work of PROMONTORIO has often been identified with the pursuit of a ‘system of robustness’ (i.e. solidity, stability and durability) both in terms of representational meaning and technical research. This in turn, has been implemented and tested in vast construction sites and under challenging time and budget constrains.
Their process springs from a dynamic and focused design culture that fosters collaboration above all. This cohesive and interactive structure enables us to deal with large and complex projects both in terms of design and programme. Ranging from schools, museums and cultural institutions, to housing, offices, hotels and retail, PROMONTORIO has accomplished projects in Algeria, Angola, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cape Verde, China, Dubai, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Georgia, Mozambique, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Serbia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey and Vietnam, having established partnerships in many of these.
Their work has received various international awards and has been presented in conferences and lectures in Austria, Brazil, Finland, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Portugal, UK and the USA. It was exhibited, among others, in the 9th Venice Architecture Biennial, in La Triennale di Milano, in Arc en rêve (Bordeaux), in Cornell University (Ithaca), and more recently in Aedes Gallery (Berlin).
Arquitectos. Cravo
Silva Cravo Arquitectos is a Lisbon based group of architects and designers that operates within the fields of architecture, design, urbanism and landscape. Here we share our collection of words, photographs, drawings and illustrations, projects we've built and haven't built, that best reflects the future we envision.
Awards.- Honourable Mention, International Open Competition “Santa Clara Market Lisbon”, Lisbon Triennal 2016 (2nd Prize), International Open Competition “Residential building in Lisbon”, EPAL 2018 (3nd Prize), International Open Competition “Cascais Youth Building, Parede“ , C.M.C. 2018 (Finalist), International Open Competition “Polo Scolastico di Gignano,Torreta, S.Ellia, L'Aquilla,” L'Aquilla 2019.
Awards.- Honourable Mention, International Open Competition “Santa Clara Market Lisbon”, Lisbon Triennal 2016 (2nd Prize), International Open Competition “Residential building in Lisbon”, EPAL 2018 (3nd Prize), International Open Competition “Cascais Youth Building, Parede“ , C.M.C. 2018 (Finalist), International Open Competition “Polo Scolastico di Gignano,Torreta, S.Ellia, L'Aquilla,” L'Aquilla 2019.
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