This house is set upon a promontory, Cape Espichel, south of Lisbon. It sits close to high cliffs and, even if at ground level you don´t see the sea, you can sense it's presence by the salted smell, the humidity of the winds that sweep over from the Northwest, and by the harsh reflected light which seems to come from all around.

            The lot is at the edge of a low density village, with an irregular geometry resulting from the construction of a peripheral road, looking southwards to a nature protected area.

            From our observation of local vernacular architecture, we noticed how constructions consisted of an assembly of simple, small, low, gabled roofed volumes, arranged so as to provide shelter from the prevailing winds, whilst creating patios for outdoor use. From the start, our aim was to follow this strategy.

            The program is divided into three volumes, identical in section, loosely placed according to function, following the varying limits of the lot: two for the bedrooms and one for the garage. Uniting the space between these volumes is a flat slab, open to the sides, in opposition to the archetypical closed gabled volumes. This open area corresponds to the entrance, circulation and open space organization for kitchen and dining, with a generous access to the pool area to the south. The upper side of this slab is a terrace, accessible both from the exterior and both attics in the interior. It is connected to the pool, as a sun deck and extension of the exterior area, fundamental also in the sense that, from this level, you can see the sea.

            To the back, on the north side, two volumes for the bedrooms define a secluded patio. One of these volumes extends to the south over the living area with a double height room, closed and introverted on ground level, but linked to the mezzanine level in the attic. Here, the interior pathway culminates in a big triangular window, the tympanum of classical architecture, which has been voided to frame the view of the sea, where a line of freight ships continuously follow the route around the cape. 

            This project accepts the contemporary vernacular of local construction systems which derives from Modernism. In this sense, it marries a rethinking of traditional forms and materials with common, economical construction systems: structure in reinforced concrete slabs and columns, outside walls in thermal clay bricks, interior walls in plaster and stucco... 

            The range of materials was deliberately restricted and locally sourced: terracotta tiles, white glazed azulejos, varnished pinewood, uncoloured anodized aluminium... The pearl white roof tiles are used for thermal efficiency but also as a reference to the local Monastery at the Cape where the Casa da Água, and Ermida da Memória are beautifully covered in white. This is of course a Moorish influence, something also present in the way the windows for the bathrooms are closed with perforated concrete blocks. Again, this a common economical standard block used for storing wine bottles, as are the pre-stressed thin concrete beams, used vertically in the "curtain wall" that limits the bedroom courtyard.

            Care was taken so as the house would consume very little energy, with a high thermal inertia (Category A, ADENE national energy system). A thick insulation of cork wraps the exterior walls, windows were deeply set back on south facing walls, and closed with insulated wooden shutters on the others. The white, ventilated roof-tiles are ideal in reducing the needs for cooling in the summer, which, associated with interior cross ventilation, dispenses with the use of air conditioning. A heat pump provides hot water used in bathrooms and under floor heating. The large openings for the garage and living room are closed with sliding panels of painted corrugated steel, related to the ones found locally in common agricultural constructions.