Location: Cuatro Vientos, Madrid Typology: Residential Client: Private Date: 2022 Partners: José Luis ZabalaThis project arises from the extension of a small house with a very rigid original structure. The intervention seeks to open it up to light, adapting it to the family’s new needs through a larger living room and kitchen, visually connected to the garden. The house features a master bedroom with an en-suite bathroom, two additional bedrooms, and a through-study that allows for work or study within the family, blending domestic life with productivity without losing warmth.
The entire proposal is organized around a primary axis that connects the entrance window to the rear garden. Along this axis unfolds the journey through the house: from the entrance, through the hallway, into the kitchen-living area, and culminating in the garden with a round pool as a visual anchor. This linear gesture not only organizes the spaces but also establishes the relationship between the architecture and its immediate surroundings.
The façade is perhaps the most representative element of the project. Four arches structure its front: the two central ones define the heart of the home, while the lateral arches complete the extremities and allow direct connection to the exterior. This sequence of arches, as simple as it is expressive, articulates the geometry of the ensemble and defines its identity. The language of the arches extends into the interior, where access to the living room also occurs through an arch leading to a barrel vault. This space is illuminated by three circular skylights, casting a top-down light that transforms the atmosphere of the home’s circulation paths. In line with this gesture, the original entrance window is replaced by a round window, reinforcing the continuity between interior and exterior.
The materiality and structure of the project aim for balance and lightness. The roof is designed so that rainwater does not flow toward the garden, creating a clean image reminiscent of the whitewashed houses from the 1950s nearby. A pergola provides shade to the porch and houses a circular planter that integrates the existing vegetation. Inside, the choice of pink and green tones creates a calm, almost introspective atmosphere, where the psychology of color serves everyday well-being.
The House of the Four Arches seeks harmony between geometry, light, and the connection to the garden’s nature . A home that opens gently to its surroundings, where each arch tells a story and every space invites you to inhabit time with calm.
This project arises from the extension of a small house with a very rigid original structure. The intervention seeks to open it up to light, adapting it to the family’s new needs through a larger living room and kitchen, visually connected to the garden. The house features a master bedroom with an en-suite bathroom, two additional bedrooms, and a through-study that allows for work or study within the family, blending domestic life with productivity without losing warmth.
The entire proposal is organized around a primary axis that connects the entrance window to the rear garden. Along this axis unfolds the journey through the house: from the entrance, through the hallway, into the kitchen-living area, and culminating in the garden with a round pool as a visual anchor. This linear gesture not only organizes the spaces but also establishes the relationship between the architecture and its immediate surroundings.
The façade is perhaps the most representative element of the project. Four arches structure its front: the two central ones define the heart of the home, while the lateral arches complete the extremities and allow direct connection to the exterior. This sequence of arches, as simple as it is expressive, articulates the geometry of the ensemble and defines its identity. The language of the arches extends into the interior, where access to the living room also occurs through an arch leading to a barrel vault. This space is illuminated by three circular skylights, casting a top-down light that transforms the atmosphere of the home’s circulation paths. In line with this gesture, the original entrance window is replaced by a round window, reinforcing the continuity between interior and exterior.
The materiality and structure of the project aim for balance and lightness. The roof is designed so that rainwater does not flow toward the garden, creating a clean image reminiscent of the whitewashed houses from the 1950s nearby. A pergola provides shade to the porch and houses a circular planter that integrates the existing vegetation. Inside, the choice of pink and green tones creates a calm, almost introspective atmosphere, where the psychology of color serves everyday well-being.
The House of the Four Arches seeks harmony between geometry, light, and the connection to the garden’s nature . A home that opens gently to its surroundings, where each arch tells a story and every space invites you to inhabit time with calm.
Location: Cuatro Vientos, Madrid Typology: Residential Client: Private Date: 2022 Partners: José Luis Zabala
