Single-family house in Elche

Shade and Landscape

The house is conceived in one of the most distinctive landscapes of the Mediterranean: the palm grove terrain of the Vega Baja. In this demanding climate, defined by intense solar radiation, shade and thermal protection become the conceptual axis around which the entire architecture is organised. More than a simple dwelling, the house is born from the desire to establish a direct bond with the landscape, offering refuge without withdrawing from it.

The project takes shape as a large horizontal roof that acts as a generous, structuring porch. This expansive, open ground floor becomes the true heart of the house: an intermediate space that hosts and amplifies domestic life while mediating its relationship with the exterior. The building is conceived as a large porticoed structure within which closed programmatic volumes are carefully inserted, each framed by large timber openings that fold back to connect directly with the porch and dissolve the boundary between inside and outside. This simple yet permeable geometry frames the views and brings the palm grove visually into the interior.

The functional organisation is resolved with clarity. The rear of the house is structured through rigid, opaque cores that contain services and circulation, and that create a gradient of privacy from the entrance to the plot. The living spaces open towards the opposite side and are conceived as lightweight elements enclosed by large sliding glass surfaces, always sheltered by the shade of the porch. On the first floor, a more contained volume dedicated to the bedrooms rises to gain privacy and capture panoramic views over the horizon.

Materiality seeks the strongest possible connection to the environment. The construction is massive in character, built in lifts using concrete with aggregates sourced from the site itself, defining both interior and exterior surfaces. This gives the colour palette earthy, warm tones that root the building to the ground. Materials are noble and honest, ensuring that the experience of the architecture is inseparable from the experience of the place.

The result is a robust and sincere architecture—visually permeable yet solid—that finds balance in shade and openness, allowing the landscape of Elx to be enjoyed to its fullest.