Dune House
The Dune House project tries to establish a new relationship between architecture and landscape, by using the two universes into one unique group. The two artificial sand dunes connect the house to the landscape and extend its limits far away. In the middle of these two hills, four concrete arms shelter all living functions, in a crisscross direction. The roof undulates, in a warp shape, creating different interior and exterior atmospheres. Crossing the house trough the roof becomes an experience in itself, giving new points of view over the landscape, and reminding us of the old road that crossed the landscape.
The location of the house was based on two major points: easy access; and opened area. Both aspects where intended to reduce the intervention to a minimum, in terms of cutting trees and changing local natural conditions. The chosen place was an old sand road near a clearing.
Most of the windows are oriented south in order to promote the solar gains in the winter. The largest window, from the living room, is protected by a concrete slab that leaves the glass windows in shade during the summer period. The swimming pool is facing south and promotes the air cooling during the summer.
The two exterior sorts of patios promote the cooling of the house and provide all rooms with transversal ventilation. They will have different plants and shrubs growing in order to create a cooling system.Due to the particular climate, very hot in the summer but with a high variation of temperature between day and night, we have designed thick and heavy walls. The weight of the whole wall delays the heat and cold cycles, so when it’s hot outside its cool inside, and when it’s cold outside its warm inside. The dunes are made out of the excavation sand and the construction remains, therefore minimizing costs and material dislocation. Both dunes and the ceiling will help to maintain a constant interior temperature, because of the natural earth’s thermal inertia.
