PLOM house is the result of the segregation in two of a single-family dwelling typical from Cabanyal neighborhood: two-story house+ attic, a small patio at the back and a width of just 7m. Montse and Sara are two sisters who, although are happy to see each other every day, want to be a little more independent.
Keeping the current volume and its holes, the proposal empties the interior but preserves the stories of the family. Our main objective: not to lose space. Every centimeter was a world. The fixed elements were compacted and reduced to allow maximum spatial flexibility in the rest of the rooms.
The result is two houses of barely 60m2, so working the small scale and details becomes fundamental in the process. Through the design, the aim is to make the most of the space and incorporate to it the residual corners: integrated shelves, niches, etc. The new dividing wall between the dwelling plays with a curved geometry in order to create a feeling of greater amplitude and give a distinctive character to each of the spaces it divides.
One of the main difficulties of the project was to locate two staircases on the plot in a way that they did not break up the interior space: they had to be light elements that let light in. In the case of Sara's house, a folded metal sheet rises above the kitchen and allows it to be directly related to the courtyard. In Montse's house, the staircase was treated as a skylight up to the access, reducing the stringpiece and the steps to the minimum expression. To ensure its correct structural behaviour, the inner string is crisscrossed and anchored to the outer one. The sensation of lightness is achieved by leaving the string hidden under the intermediate step, combining design and functionality. This is reinforced by the contrast generated between the first brickwork steps and the start of the suspended metal staircase.
In terms of materiality, neutral tones have been chosen so that the protagonist of the space is the light. Other elements, such as the layout of the paving at the entrance and the small-format tiles in the kitchen and terrace, provide greater dynamism. In the bathrooms, a translucent glass gives a fun touch by creating a visual connection with the stairs and their movement. In the kitchen, a suspended and highly permeable shelf complements the storage without losing the relationship with the exterior. That element, anchored to the ceiling structure by a hidden substructure, is made up of three metal U-shape braced together on which the wooden shelves rest.
All in all, we have worked with the same container and the same language, but responding to the different lives and requirements of two sisters. Together but not mixed up.
Team:
Architects: la cooperativeta
Photographer: Milena Villalba
