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Launch video
Architect Agency
Arnau Estudi d'Arquitectura
Fabricator
Plantalech
Product solutions used
SOLEAL windows and LUMEAL sliders
Photographer
Marc Torra
”The jury was unanimous in their decision. The narrow plot was used in a clever and efficient manner. The design resembles semi-industrial structures with a well-executed interior. It's impressive that the space can be both open or closed. The site is challenging, but the architectural approach, especially with the garage, is noteworthy. The project achieves a lot with limited resources.”
Jury comments
In the Olot of the 1920s, while Manuel Malagrida was constructing the "Ensanche Malagrida," the neighborhood for the wealthy, Rafael Arau was developing the so-called "Popular Ensanche," the neighborhood for the less affluent. This is how architect Arnau Vergés explains the origin of the district in Olot, Girona, where this family home is located. The house was designed for a large family, with a layout that navigates between diverse typologies and multiple levels to be overcome.
A garage door became a dominant element in the project, requiring various strategies to minimize its visual impact. A half-story level difference between the street and the rear garden led to the use of split levels, making the sectional design the primary organizational and representative feature of the project.
The layout is structured around the placement of the functional program across four levels at varying heights, organized on either side of the staircase and elevator core, which is located at the center of the building's usable depth. The house is arranged with the service areas facing the street façade, both at the basement and ground floor levels, while the living areas and communal spaces are oriented towards the garden façade. The vertical circulation areas are placed in the center of the house. The first-floor layout creates a central core for circulation and services, reserving the eastern and western façade strips for bedrooms.
Concealed behind the façade, both the SOLEAL windows in their hidden sash version and the LUMEAL sliders, also with hidden sashes, have maximized the entry of natural light and contributed to the home's energy efficiency.
Hidden behind the façade, the aluminum joinery discreetly reveals the secret of what lies within, blending seamlessly with the architectural design.
