Is it feasible to build a family house between two blocks of flats, in Barcelona, and create, at the same time, a private quiet space; and moreover, full of natural light?
PRIVACY AND LIGHT This building and warehouse have been designed and located on a plot of land between two blocks of flats, which represent difficulties to get natural light , and also, a comfortable relationship with the surroundings. At first thought, the site was not suitably located. It is to say, the outdoor settings aren’t a welcoming zone, for a family house. Another negative outstanding point is the fact that this place is extremely noisy. It gets the maximum of decibels according to regulations.
The starting point of our project was to minimize the effect of these two points: noise and light. Greatly influenced by those two ideas we created two different zones. The night zone situated close to the street, and the day one orientated to the inside part of the block.
While the main façade was thought to give privacy and protect from the daily noise, the back one was designed to have as much light as possible. The first one is completely compact and stablishes what appears to be a more closed appearance on the outside; and the interior one, which includes a terrace, is transparent, providing the air and the sun light coming in.
The most dominant architectural feature is the access of natural light inside the different spaces and rooms. This is due to a system of folding shutter blinds, that protect from the extra solar radiation; and a succession of vertical spaces and zenithal skylights.
The fact of living in such a space in the middle of a big city can be considered a big challenge; if we have in mind that the length of the site is 17 m.
