Casa del Sol: Courtyard House Rooted in Stone, Shade, Water Ritual
Casa del Sol sits in Conil de le Frontera, Spain, a house by Steyn Studio that draws its plan and poise from the sun. The project threads courtyards through a low, stone-lined ensemble and crowns it with a latticed central volume. Materials do the talking here, from Andalusian limestone to clay tiles that temper glare and heat, while timber and woven textures warm the interiors for relaxed coastal living.
Soft morning light brushes a white wall cut by a semicircle of lattice, the pattern catching shadows like clockwork. Beyond, pine canopies drift over stone-lined courts and a calm oval pool.
This is a house in Conil de le Frontera by Steyn Studio, organized as a contemporary cortijo with rooms gathered around courtyards. The core idea is material and build: local limestone, clay tile, and timber craft a shelter that filters sun and frames breeze.
Catch Sun Arcs
Inverted arches cut into perforated screens choreograph light from dawn to dusk, their geometry reading as rising and setting suns. The patterned lattice throws dapple across terraces and the dining porch, turning a simple wall into a daily timekeeper that tempers glare while keeping air moving.
Set Stone and Timber
Rugged stone wraps ground-level walls and arcades, giving weight at the perimeter and a tactile face to the courtyards. Inside, exposed timber beams run above pale floors, with a floating timber stair on a slim steel spine stepping past vertical slats toward the upper rooms.
Cool Courtyard Thresholds
Sliding glass panels open to a central court where an oval lap pool gathers the ensemble and cools the air. Shaded outdoor dining sits under a beamed canopy, its ceiling faced with tile and reed textures, so meals drift between interior lounge and open court with little ceremony.
Hold the Urban Edge
Toward the street, a measured wall and breeze-block screen establish a clear edge and a quiet gate, keeping private life within the plot. Once inside, the rooms ring the court—stone jambs, timber shutters, and deep reveals shaping a protected world still open to the wider pine grove.
Rooms with Warm Grain
The living areas favor grounded textures: woven pendants, lightly finished wood tables, and neutral textiles that sit easy beside the stone. In the bedrooms, lime-washed walls and pendant baskets land a soft glow, while the same beam rhythm carries overhead to keep the material story continuous.
Late day, the latticed circle burns gold, then cools to a pale disc as the breeze threads through the arcades. Craft and climate do the work, leaving a house that reads through touch, shade, and the measured cadence of masonry and timber.
Photography by Manolo Espaliú
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