ARX

Set within a privileged natural landscape, this project in the Marinha Guincho Tourist Village adapts to the rugged topography and merges with the terrain through both its material and colour choices.

The presence of geological outcrops informs the primary volumetric strategy: one volume embedded in the natural terrain and a floating volume supported by the first. Both are made of exposed concrete, differentiated by the textures created through different formwork and by the tones of the applied pigments. The first is a dark reddish-brown, while the second is a light ochre, both textured using OSB panels. The colours were refined from samples collected from the local limestone formations, reinforcing the continuity between architecture and nature. The two volumes overlap and operate in dialectical complementarity.

Access is provided from the highest point of the site, close to the entrance level, where the house’s communal spaces are located. These open directly onto a large terrace through wide, transparent openings. Below, the lower floor accommodates the garage and technical areas, accessed by a gently sloping ramp to the southwest.

The upper floor, arranged in an L-shape, contains the private areas and is terminated at both ends by two courtyard-balconies, connected by a narrow balcony that provides shade to the openings below while allowing full enjoyment of the surrounding landscape and sea views.