The Candela House situated in an area surrounded by mountains, Aballe Dego, close to the River Sellain Spain. Designed by place zigzag arquitectura suggested the idea of a mountain ,hollowed inside, with eyes strategically arranged to capture the surrounding landscape, introducing it into the rooms of the house and avoiding direct views into the homes of the nearest neighbours. The result is a hard shell, earthy and perforated, allowing the entry of the landscape in the form of pictures which change each time you return to the house.
The house has two exterior rooms, facing the north and the south, which highlight the value of the use of the traditional Asturian porch as a space extension and a relationship with nature. In the darkness of the night, the shell disappears, and when the house is inhabited, the holes appear as “living fragments” floating in the landscape. Capturing the landscape is one of the main aims of the project. The night programme, bedrooms and bathrooms, is located in the northern area, leaving the southern orientation to the meeting spaces and the double height space: living room – dining room – kitchen. The porch serves as a link between the day spaces of the ground floor, and at the same time is used to mark the difference with the kitchen-dining room-living room programme. The north porch is linked to the main bedroom downstairs and contains the outside staircase which communicates the upstairs rooms directly with nature.
The circulations inside the house are developed along the longitudinal axis of the house. The main entrance to the house is from the entrance porch, located in the northern facade, next to the garage entrance. Both accesses meet in the hall, from which the promenade starts and connects all the rooms. The construction system is adapted to the resources available in the area: reinforced concrete structure as well as double brick isolated walls. The facades of the house are made with a dark grey rendering coat and planks of iroko wood. The roof is built with flat concrete tiles, adapting to the material regulations of the area. – Photos by B. Angelini and D. Casino
