Studio House
In 1995, Lacaton & Vassal wrote that “we deprive ourselves of extraordinary architecture for the sake of some bourgeois comfort”. Based on this assumption, the refurbishment of this bicentenary house aims to do the opposite. In it, there are neither master bedrooms nor en-suites.
There are no extravagant finishes, built-in wardrobes or walk-in closets. The form of its spaces does not follow predetermined functions, as domestic etiquette is not exactly expected to be respected inside this house. The existent building was emptied of the superfluous and only the indispensable was rebuilt: two sculptures, containing the essential infrastructure for its habitability: a kitchen and a bathroom. A mezzanine was added for practical reasons of intimacy.
These new volumes were built in pine wood, birch plywood and water-repellent MDF for greater durability. From a plastic point of view, the colors reflect the condition of the materials themselves. The existing wooden structure was replaced only where unavoidable for safety reasons. In the middle of the room, a log is the Alberto Carneiro we could never afford.
Everything was kept as much as possible, as “not-making” was considered a methodological premise. Both the existing entrance door and the wooden windows were restored, without any other work being carried out on the main façade. The roof and south façade were both insulated for energy efficiency. For the same reason, new wooden frames were produced for the rear façade: red lacquered for protection and evocation, including shutters for intimacy and light
regulation. On the north façade, new interior frames were added, creating micro winter gardens that conserve the warmth in and the street noise out. The choices we made (and those we didn't) allowed us to achieve a budget of less than 500 euros/m2
