The pool is located on one of the sides of the house (dialoguing with the lower floor through a cover that moves), and enjoys privileged views having a panoramic view of the surrounding landscape.
Port de la Selva by Marià Castelló + José Antonio Molina. Photography by Marià Castelló.
Description of project by Marià Castelló + José Antonio Molina
Port de la Selva is a small coastal settlement in the northernmost part of the Costa Brava. The intervention is located on a plot of "La Tamariua" urbanization on the north slope of Puig Gros, a small promontory that surrounds and protects the port of the town.
The topography presents a pronounced slope towards the sea with abundant outcrops of porphyry, a dark and very hard rock that characterizes the geology of the volcanic origin of the place. The conditions climatic conditions are those typical of the Mediterranean climate, although sometimes they become extreme, with strong northerly component winds (Tramontana) that frequently hit the coast.
The tension between the optimal solar orientation and the deep panoramic views compresses the program of a house for a family with four children on two levels: the lower one embedded in the bedrock and the above, divided into two volumes. This combination of strategies (embedding in the ground and volumetric division) allows to reduce the apparent volume of the intervention and improve its integration in the landscape, as well as generating different patios that provide warmth, lighting, and ventilation at points strategic.
The interstices between the rocky matrix of porphyry and the architecture become the most lyrical moments of the proposal and where you most want to be. While on the lower level, almost at street level, more intimate relationships with the outside are established through patios, on the upper level the two volumes open frontally to the landscape and the horizon Marine.
Also on the upper level, more introverted relationships are generated between the volumes and the surrounding rocky substrate. Thus, the glass nexus, which connects the two bodies and contains the vertical communication, acts as a screen against the wind and generates a space for external relationships sheltered from the prevailing wind but visually permeable towards the sea.
This in turn is capable of receiving correct sunlight during the winter months, as it is also oriented to the south. From a tectonic point of view, concrete is the predominant material both outdoors and indoors. interior, given that its stony nature establishes an intense dialogue with the rocky substratum of the place. Also, its resistance to inclement weather (strong winds and marine environment) makes it one of the most durable options, with little maintenance and, therefore, more sustainable.
Also on the outside, porphyry gravel from the emptying of the excavation has been used as finishing of the roofs and interstitial patios between the intervention and the bedrock.
To compensate for the intrinsic qualities of concrete, oak wood has been chosen to form the exterior carpentry, some coatings, furniture made to measure, etc., providing the set of warmth and harmony.
