House O3

Barclay & Crousse Architecture as Architects

Located on a flat terrain, in the middle of an extensive beach, the building establishes strategies to preserve intimacy in relation to the current emptiness of the desert landscape and the density of future condominiums.


An enclosure is established as the “founding act” of the house, occupying the total length and width of the lot with the maximum permitted height, thus establishing a prism which is then excavated to create the living space, a large horizontal area for everyday life.


Without the need for cover or protection, open air spaces permitted by our climate free the architecture and allow opacity and transparency to create the impression of a space that is larger than it actually is. This “special dilatation” preserves the intimacy of the habitants, modulating the amplitude to the diversity of use.


The space is thus realized through the creation of diagonals which permit the dilatation and generate an interior landscape which “captures” the natural landscape and frames it with a large suspended beam which defines one side of the enclosure.


A reciprocating relation between intimate space and captured space is thus created and operated by the observer. The house is an instrument that promotes a dialog among man, architecture, and landscape, reaffirming these connections through action.


A multitude of ambiguous spaces occupy the site: enclosed exteriors, open interiors, intimate exteriors, and extroverted interiors which occur in a sequence dictated by multiple possible paths determined by the user, activities throughout the day and night, and impromptu uses by the inhabitants.

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