House on the Woods is a Refuge Integrated into the Forest

The preexisting dwelling lies within a set of disused stone walls, where a Mediterranean forest of pine and oak trees has grown over the years. Andrea + Joan Arquitectes aimed to restore the relationship between the original construction and this characteristic landscape, which is typical of the region and deeply rooted in cultural knowledge.

The building has a rectangular floor plan and two stories, with a small, deteriorated shed attached to the rear facade, initially intended for agricultural use. On the ground floor, the construction includes stone masonry and a unidirectional floor with wooden beams and ceramic vaults. Meanwhile, the upper floor’s structure comprises ceramic walls and pilasters, supporting a gabled roof made of wooden beams and ceramic tiles.

Designed in 2023, the House on the Woods is conceived from a concentric strategy that follows and enhances the structure of walls. On one hand, the functional program is attached to these walls, occupying the perimeter, and forming a ring around a central space.

This equipped perimeter incorporates part of the domestic program, such as the kitchen, sofa, wardrobe, and stairs. On the other hand, a new layer reinforces thermal insulation by enveloping the building, exaggerating the depth of the original walls, and ensuring high thermal inertia.

The original openings are retained and transformed into views that frame both the immediate landscape, such as the forest and the orchard, and the distant one. The increased depth of the walls allows these openings to become spaces, serving as an entrance threshold, habitable niches internally, or accommodating external shutters recessed into the wall.

The upper floor maintains the original layout, where three spaces of similar proportions are aligned with two doors. The central space has a unique height compared to other buildings with similar characteristics. It provides access to two rooms, one at each end, with only essential elements for inhabiting these spaces constructed, such as a platform for a bed and a bench under the windows, embedded within the original pilasters.

The project converts the deteriorated shed into a colorful and open bathroom. A large window fills the space with light, colors, and reflections, transforming a space that is typically seen as introverted into an open space that benefits from the privacy provided by the generic forest landscape.

The project’s philosophy extends to the exterior, where several minimal interventions aim to ensure the integration of the building with the environment. Existing terraces are consolidated, old stone walls are restored, and new ones are constructed. A pergola on the main facade reintegrates a previously existing grapevine. The old watering trough is repurposed as a planter, and slopes are consolidated with native vegetation.

The material palette reflects the tones of the forest environment, such as the grey of the slate substrate and the green of the foliage, as well as ceramics for outdoor paving. The relationship with the environment is emphasized using natural materials and finishes, both for wood and the clay interior coating, taking advantage of their hygro-thermal and acoustic properties.

This intervention celebrates the potential of generic traditional rural architecture, which is often abandoned and forgotten beneath layers of thick forest. Through minimal interventions and the construction of the necessary infrastructure for basic needs, the House on the Woods seeks to establish a more sustainable relationship with the territory.