Project name: House in Paço de Arcos
Architect: Jorge Mealha
Design Team: Arch. Jo„o SÌtima, Arch. LuÌs Banazol, Arch. Pedro Pereira, Arch.Marcelo Dantas
Location: Alto do Lagoal, PaÁo de Arcos, Lisbon, Portugal
Client: Margarida e AntÛnio Lemos
Use: Single Housing
Site Area: 907 m2
Building Gross Area: 388,50 m2
Floor Net Area: 302 m2
Landscape Area: 629 m2
Coverage Ratio: 30,6 %
Gross Floor Ratio: 77,74 %
Project Year: Sept. 2003-March 2004
Photographs: Jorge Mealha
Located in Alto do Lagoal, a neighborhood facing the sea in Lisbon, Portugal, the home sits nicely between two blues: the sky and sea. The House at Paço de Arcos by Jorge Mealha, unfolds a setting where solids and voids are in display for each other. The arrangement and span of the masses allows for interesting in-between spaces that not only allows light to penetrate the core of the development but also allows reflection as water and shadows bend the surfaces and maximizes its adjacencies. These reflections allows for a dramatic play and change of light throughout the day and give texture to the endless cement plaster walls that dress this house.
The juxtaposition of volumes creates interesting paths, exquisite views and comfortable interior spaces protected from the harsh sunlight. The play of masses create an experience which bends and moves the functional needs of the home. What I truly love the most is the attention each surface calls upon itself when viewed from different positions. When you stand across the pool you see a repeated mass with a corner fenestration. When you stand across the pool vertically, you see the canopy reflected and stretching the volume below the water. Every nook and every space captures a new experience. The wash of white throughout clearly puts purpose to the well thought out geometries. The true color of this home is created by the interactions of mass and void.
In architecture, light is the best color for any mass as it uses its depth, length and shape to bend light, create shadows and reflect its power onto the space. This home is a perfect example of such colorful play. Anything else would have been nothing but an obstacle to the ensemble of characters playing in this play. A quiet home at night but quite loud and dramatic during the day.