House in Casavells by 05 AM Arquitectura

This split-level terraced house has been completed by 05 AM Arquitectura on a narrow plot in Girona, Spain.

The stepped floors and bright yellow shelving of House in Casavells define the individual spaces whilst allowing long views and natural light through the whole house.

The house can be accessed both from the ground floor street level or from the lower ground garden level, where there is also a car port.

Photographs are by José Hevia

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Here is some more information from the architects:

The terraced house is located in a narrow and long plot situated on the edge of small village.

The house has a contrast in both open sides, in the north, the old village with narrow streets of stone. And in the south, we have the garden, the pool, the sun and the landscape.

Access is possible through the two facades at different levels, but is usually done with the car through the south facade.

The house is defined to answer to the contrast between the features of two sides.

The house has a depressed zone in the middle to have a better relation with the garden and the landscape, and the roof is fragmented to let the natural light pass. With the different levels of the ground and the ceiling we clearly identify the individual character and volume of each space with a different use, into an open space always luminous and linked to the landscape.

In the lower ground floor, open to south and in contact with the garden, we must resolve the usual access to housing with the car, so we propose to have a space with more attributes than a garage with dark background. It is a transitional space between inside and outside of the house, a threshold where they can develop alternative uses.

With the aim to allow a good relation into different spaces, we place middle space on an intermediate level between the level of the basement and the main floor. It's the place of leisure and study, as a common space between the various activities of the house where we place the library, a desk, and bleachers, with the purpose of being a playground for children, a meeting space or a home cinema.

The main floor is a unique space, with a large opening at its southern end. From this level we can see the multifunctional space of the entry and the garden through the studio located at an intermediate level. This space depressed in the middle of the main floor also allows having views to the landscape.

In this floor we have the main uses, the kitchen, the living room and the terrace. And in the north side also we have the entry from the street of the village.

In the first floor where we have the bedrooms, the slab breaks it into three, leaving two open gaps between them that allow the passage of the overhead light to the ground floor. These three slabs are placed at different heights to qualify and define spatially the different uses that are located in the lower floor.

It is a house that provides solutions to the conditions and take full advantage of the benefits of the place where is located, creating a pleasant indoor space with many possibilities of use, and ways to connect and qualify the spaces.