Casa em Afife is located in northern Portugal, on a rural plot of land at the foot of a hill which slopes down towards the plains, becoming a piece of arable land which reaches all the way to the sea. There is a small chapel near the land, and its presence has had an influence on the project, particularly in terms of the design of the structure, its realisation on the ground, and the definition of construction details
Casa em Afife. Minimalist architecture designed to blend in with the natural slopes of the land
Casa em Afife, a villa with a swimming pool designed on the basis of a square module. Clean lines and lots of white: these are the elements that characterise a building designed to fit perfectly into its natural surroundings
Architect Guilherme Machado Vaz tried not to disturb the harmony of this religious space but at the same time did not want to submit to its presence. The design was based on a square layout which is repeated in the swimming pool and in the space between the villa and the pool. The regular, compact and vertical structure evokes the essence of a traditional type of construction in the Minho region
Another of the project's intentions was to respect the natural topography of the land, and to do this the building has a mezzanine floor, which allowed a direct relationship with the outside on the south and west sides of the house. Useful space is maximised by installing the staircase in the centre in order to minimise the traffic areas and promote the path culminating in the roof terrace
Analysing it in retrospect, the combination of spatial elements brings with it some reminiscences of Adolf Loos' architecture. There is a strong contrast between the exterior and the interior, the façade represents in the architect's idea a shell that occasionally allows, through openings, the connection between the house and the world
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